Whistle+For+Willie

=__**Whistle For Willie**__=
 * Author:** Ezra Jack Keats

Reading Level - Ages 4 and up Paperback - 32 pages Publisher - Puffin Illustrated - unknown Language - English ISBN - 978-0140502022
 * Bibliographic Data:**

Ezra Jack Keats was born on March 11, 1916 in East New York, Brooklyn. He was artistically gifted from an early age. He made pictures out of whatever scrap of wood, cloth, and paper he could collect. He was a children's literature and illustrator. His first picture book, //The Snowy Day,// was awarded the Caldecott Medal and is considered one of the most important American books of the 20th century. Keats is best known for introducing multiculturalism into American children's literature. He was one of the first children's book authors to use an urban setting for his stories and he developed the use of collage as an illustration. In 1983, Keats died at age of 67. His last projects included designing the sets for a musical version of his book, //The Trip//, designing a poster for The New Theater of Brooklyn, and writing and illustrating a retelling of the folktale "The Giant Turnip."
 * Author Biography:**

This book is about a little boy, name Peter. When he saw a boy whistling to call his dog, Peter decides to whistle to call his dog, Willie. He tries and tries to learn how to whistle. He practiced every day and in varieties of ways such as, turning himself, hiding in an empty carton, coloring a long line on the sidewalk all the way home, by putting his father's old hat to make himself feel more grown-up, pretending to be his father, and walking the cracks in the sidewalk. He kept trying until he was able to whistle. His dog, Willie, looks aroung to see who is whistling and calling him. Peter becomes so happy with himself and for what he was able to do, that when he went on an errand to the grocery store, he whistled all the way there and all the way back home.
 * Summary:**

This is a really nice picture book for young children, because it shows the importance of practicing and working hard in order to achieve something important to you. The author really depicts the mind and behavior of a 4 or 5 year old child in this story. The character Peter is someone who everyone can relate to since he shows the reader that a person should never give up or stop working hard. The colorful illustrations accompany the text with each attempt that Peter tries to learn to whistle. For example, after spinning around or turning himself around, Peter attempts to regain his equilibrium. The illustrations show a heavy, arching sidewalk with Peter and a traffic-light post tilting forward and then backward. The detail of the colored lights floating away from the post perfectly conveys that spinning feeling after one gets a dizzying spin. The illustrations also reminds you of a collage, very colorful and abstract, but shows the persistence that Peter is going through to learn how to whistle. This book also provides a colorful perspective of an urban landscape.
 * Review:**

I would use this book in my classroom to teach my students about the theme of this book, which is perseverance and working hard. It conveys a message about practicing, practicing, and practicing in order to achieve what you want. The character Peter is someone who everyone can relate to since he shows the reader that a person should never give up or stop working hard. Peter "began to turn himself around, around, and around." "He hid in an empty carton lyingon the sidewalk." These are some examples that Peter used in order to whistle and kept on trying. He never gave up until he finally could whistle. Also, it shows that if you can't do something and one way doesn't work, try and do it in different ways. In other words, if it doesn't work one way try another way. Peter tried to whistle while spinning, hiding in an empty carton, drawing a long line with a colored chalk, pretending to be his father, and walking along a crack in the sidewalk. For example, when pretending to be his father, "He went into his house and put on his father's old hat to make himself feel more grown-up." Peter tried, practice, and tried in different ways until he finally could whistle. It is a good book to teach children about perseverance, working hard, and trying in different ways if one way doesn't work.
 * Analysis of a literary element:**