Review by Booklist Review
Ages 2-5. With a chanting, rhythmic text and vital narrative pictures, this version of the popular folktale will be a favorite for storytelling with young preschoolers. Egielski's recent Gingerbread Boy (1997) is set in modern-day New York City, but McClintock's illustrations, in watercolor, sepia ink, and gouache, are traditional in style and setting, reminiscent of some early Mother Goose illustrations. Once upon a time, a cheerful old man and a cheerful old woman in their old-fashioned cozy house decided to make a gingerbread man. A series of pictures shows how they bake him, step by step. Then to their consternation, he pops out of the oven and runs away. Now they are no longer smiling--they are mad. They race after the smiling little gingerbread kid, who shouts, "No! No! I won't come back! I'd rather run than be your snack!" He runs from a butcher, an elegant cow, a muddy old sow--until a sly, bookish fox tricks him and gobbles him up. There is a great scene in which all the pursuers, human and animal, stand fuming and helpless while the fox licks its lips and leaves not even a crumb. (Reviewed April 1, 1998)0590972197Hazel Rochman
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2An excellent rendition of an oft-told tale that demonstrates that there is always room for one more Gingerbread Man on the shelves. Aylesworth has done a perfect job of shaping the text to read aloud smoothly with good repetitive phrases that ring true, such as the Gingerbread Man's response to his pursuers: "No! No!/I won't come back!/I'd rather run/Than be your snack!" The text is matched beautifully with an excellent layout and McClintock's illustrations. Using watercolors, sepia ink, and gouache, the artist has created pictures with an old-fashioned look to them, which she attributes to the influence of the 19th-century French illustrator, Grandville. They also are somewhat reminiscent of the work of Randolph Caldecott. McClintock's anthropomorphic animals are wonderfully realized, especially the wily fox, and the Gingerbread Man is a saucy fellow dressed in a blue jacket and hat, with hands on hips and a big smile. The book comes complete with a recipe on the back cover. A satisfying version in every way.Judith Constantinides, East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
This hearty retelling of the well-known tale is distinguished by cheery, lively illustrations. The Gingerbread Man himself is particularly toothsome and delectable; the animals are remarkably anthropomorphic; and the scenery resembles that of the eighteenth-century English artist Thomas Bewick. With even a recipe included, this is altogether an old-fashioned and enjoyable version of a favorite tale. From HORN BOOK Fall 1998, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A traditional cumulative tale, which Aylesworth (My Sister's Rusty Bike, 1996, etc.) endows with a lively pace, is illustrated in a decidedly old-fashioned style, giving the book the look and feel of a reproduction of an old edition. Working with precise pen-and-ink, McClintock portrays the cozy home of an elderly couple, dressed in Victoriana and in possession of a great wood-burning stove. Her work has never been more animated than in the scenes of the two-dimensional gingerbread man running away, exuberantly eluding everyone else--the couple, a butcher, and a cow and pig dressed in human clothes--until he is devoured by a fox. The portrayals of a cow and pig are more bizarre than charming, and the too-obvious wrinkles on the elderly people's faces are one example of eccentric choices on the part of the illustrator. With Richard Egielski's The GingerbreadBoy (1997) hot off the press and other fine variations of the tale still in print, it's hard to make the case for this one, other than to appreciate its antique look. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
