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Summary
Summary
Complimented with Ned Bittinger's stunning illustrations, best-selling author Audrey Wood's new version of a timeless classic is the perfect read aloud for this spring and gift all year round.
When Old Grandfather Winter disappears into his ice palace high in the mountains, Young Robin chirps her wake-up song to the Root Children deep underground. "Wake up," she sings. "It's time for the masquerade!"
Right away, the Root children set to work sewing their flowering costumes, and painting bugs with rainbows until they sparkle like jewels. Then, they frolic out into the world in a joyous chorus of color and song. They sing and dance through summer. But all good things must come to an end, and as the frosty autumn winds blow away the leaves and flowers, the Root Children must return to their underground bed with gentle Mother Earth.
Author Notes
Audrey Wood was born on August 12, 1948. She is a children's book author and illustrator. Her books include Blue Sky, Silly Sally, Weird Parents, The Red Racer, and Tugford Wanted To Be Bad. She also collaborates with her husband Don Wood on picture books. These include Moonflute, The Napping House, Tickle-Octopus, Bright and Early Thursday Evening, and The Full Moon at the Napping House.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 4-According to the author's note, this story was originally written and illustrated in 1906 in Germany by Sibylle von Olfers. Wood's retelling of it is both economic and graceful. The tale itself is a gentle but joyous romp through the seasons. After Grandfather Winter returns to his palace of ice, Mother Earth wakes up her Root children, helps them dress in blossom clothing, and sends them up into the world. They frolic first with kind Aunt Spring and then with jolly Cousin Summer. The arrival of studious Uncle Fall signals a quieter time, and at last Mother Earth calls them back to their underground home and sings them a lullaby, while Grandfather Winter listens outside. The story itself is so evocative that it could be told without benefit of illustration, but in this case the pictures are so beautifully rendered that the words are almost superfluous. Bittinger's oil-on-linen paintings are nothing short of gorgeous. They are rich in texture, vibrant of hue, and rendered with such care and elegance that one is reluctant to leave one page for the next. This is a truly lovely offering from a talented pair.-Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Readers familiar with the original 1906 classic by Sybille von Olfers, which featured delicate art nouveau style illustrations, may find this new version overblown. Wood's retelling of the story finds Young Robin Redbreast awakening Mother Earth's brood in early spring and follows the Root Children through their annual "masquerade" a frolic through the seasons with Aunt Spring, Cousin Summer and Uncle Fall until it's time for them to return once again to their home beneath the ground "for their long winter's nap." The tale's timeless themes of renewal and rebirth have lost none of their resonance, but the narrative bogs down somewhat in old-fashioned cadences that may be a nod to the source but come off as slightly forced ("May love and happiness follow wherever you may bloom"). Bittinger's hazy, soft-focus oil paintings suffer the same fate. Technically skillful (his animals are exquisite), with delicate brushwork and a comely use of light and shadow, the portraits of the multicultural cast of cherubs, decked out in butterfly wings and floral garlands, falter when the brushwork drifts into the kind of calculated lushness found in Thomas Kinkade paintings. It's a laudable effort, but one that's ultimately less than the sum of its parts. Ages 5-10. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Eschewing the quaint, understated look of the original, this revamping of a 1906 German picture book contains overdone romantic portraits of multicultural sprites--as opposed to the all-blond original cast--frolicking through the seasons. WoodÆs retelling maintains a magical air but unfortunately eliminates most of the specific flower and insect names that let the earlier version double as a first field guide. From HORN BOOK Fall 2002, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Wood (A Cowboy Christmas, 2001, etc.) has retold-and refashioned-a century-old German tale into an engaging, romantic story of the seasons. Mother Earth awakes the Root Children and gathers bits of rainbow for them to make their colorful clothes. The children then wake the bugs and paint them in jewel colors. Aunt Spring welcomes the children in their bright and sweet-scented finery, and when she returns to her bed of ferns and lilies, Cousin Summer enters the scene. Soon, though, studious Uncle Fall arrives, and Mother Earth gathers the Root Children, who leave their brightly colored garments behind. The "masquerade" is over, and the Root Children are tucked in once again for the winter. Bittinger's (The Rocking Horse Christmas, 1997, etc.) rich oils show a multicultural group of Root Children, who gambol and play in fields, woods, and gardens in the sumptuous colors of forest and meadow. The original, published in German in 1906 by Sibylle von Olfers, was in verse; an early English translation is much more didactic and wordy. In both, the boy Root Children do the painting, the girl Root Children make the clothing, and they come to the earth to do their job, which is to become a profusion of plants, flowers, and grasses. Wood's tale changes the Root Children's activities from work to play-not a bad thing, but a definite difference. This can be enjoyed with no knowledge or reference to the earlier tale, of course, and is quite charming in word and image. A song, "Root Children Sleep," completes the package. (author's note) (Picture book. 4-8)
Booklist Review
Gr. 2-4. An Edwardian classic gets a fresh lease on life with a recast text matched to eye-filling, lushly romantic art. Wood shortens Helen Dean Fish's wordy English version of the German original, drops the quaint gender roles, and changes the essence of what the Root children do from work to play. Wakened by Mother Earth, the children sew new "blossom costumes" from rainbows; emerge for a nonstop masquerade with Aunt Spring, jolly Cousin Summer, and studious Uncle Fall; and then retreat to their underground burrow to slip into sleep again, as old man Winter listens at the window to Mother Earth's lullaby. Bittinger's vigorously brushed oils capture the wild rumpus with an array of diminutive human figures--some depicted in pretty, late-ninteenth-century style, others looking decidedly modern--dancing with abandon in impressionistically verdant outdoor settings. For children sophisticated enough to understand the difference between science and metaphor, this is an engaging way of looking at the seasons, and the occasional languorous prose adds an undertone of subtle sensuality. --John Peters
