Book Cover Image:
Book Summary: Who
Pushed Humpty Dumpty? is told through the eyes of a police officer, named
Binky, who also happens to be a frog.
Binky has the job of solving a variety of cases that happen to be some
of the most well known children’s stories.
It is up to Binky to figure out who broke into the three bears house,
why a witch’s sister is missing and what role Hansel and Gretel may have had in
the disappearance, who broke Humpty Dumpty, how Snow White got poisoned before
her beauty pageant, and the cause of the “earthquake” around Jack’s house. The well loved stories of Goldilocks and the
Three Bears, Hansel and Gretel, Humpty Dumpty, Snow White, and Jack and the
Beanstalk are told from a new perspective and readers are able to find out if
these mysteries were ever solved.
APA Reference of
Book:
Levinthal, D. (2012). Who
pushed Humpty Dumpty?: And other notorious nursery tale mysteries.
New York, NY. Schwartz & Wade Books.
Impressions: This
is an adorable, creative, and refreshing spin on mystery books. Using quick wit and humor, Levinthal is able
to take readers on a new adventure using a classic story. Readers familiar with these classic tales
will certainly enjoy viewing them from the criminal perspective. Narrated by Binky, the frog cop, readers are
able to see how each mystery was truly resolved in the end. Each mini-story is easy and enjoyable to read
and the illustrations add to the story wonderfully. This is a book that could definitely be used
when studying mysteries or nursery tales.
While this is not your typical mystery book, due to the fact
that most readers know the ending to these stories, and there is not a typical
problem/solution element, it still contains enough elements to fall into this
category. Within each mini story, a
crime is presented for Binky to solve.
At the end of each story, a criminal is arrested or a solution is
reached. These crime elements certainly
allow this book to fall into the mystery category. It is actually a unique twist on the typical
mystery book and is a wonderful book to share with the youngest of readers.
Professional
Review:
School Library Journal
-
Gr 1–4—These open-and-shut cases of nursery-rhyme
mysteries are narrated by Officer Binky, a toad with a manner reminiscent of
Joe Friday's on the old Dragnet TV show, with his typical "Just the
facts, Ma'am" style.
In the first of five
short stories, the officer gets a call from Mrs. Bear, who is upset because
someone broke into the family home, ate their porridge, sat in their chairs,
and slept in their beds. Based upon the evidence-a blond hair and an empty
bowl, a piece of blue material caught in a chair that has seen better days, and
a disheveled quilt on a bed-Officer Binky deduces that it "could only be
one dame: Goldilocks!" When questioned, she admits to being the intruder.
The intrepid cop assures readers that "they'll feed her three meals a day
where she's going, and she'll have plenty of time to rest." Hansel and
Gretel, Humpty Dumpty, Snow
White, and Jack and the Beanstalk are all similarly treated in eight pages or
less with the police officer quickly solving the mysteries behind the
well-known tales. Illustrations are presented in a variety of sizes and set off
by frames in different colors. At the end of each segment, a red stamp reading
'CASE CLOSED' is superimposed over Nickle's richly colored acrylic artwork. The
tongue-in-cheek telling of tales will tickle the fancies of children familiar
with the originals.
Source: Owen, M. H. (2012). Who pushed Humpty Dumpty?: And other
notorious
nursery tale mysteries. [Review of the book Who pushed Humpty Dumpty?:
And other notorious nursery tale mysteries by D. Levinthal].
School
Library Journal. (58)9. 118. Retrieved from http://libproxy.library.unt.edu:2052/hottopics/lnacademic/?verb=sr&csi=256569
Found Through: UNT Library Database – LexisNexis Academic
Library Uses: The
way this book is structured into smaller stories, provides a wonderful
opportunity for group work. Students
could be divided into groups and assigned a different story from the book. Each group could read their story and create an
alternative solution for the crime to present to the class. Another fun activity would be to read this
book as a group, then discuss the elements of a good mystery book. Then assign groups a nursery tale that is not
included in the book. They can become the
detectives and think about how they could solve the crime. For example, was Jack pushed or did he trip
down the hill? Why did the dish and spoon have to run away? Groups could create storyboards to
demonstrate their solutions to the crimes.
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