I have always loved Madeline books, so I was very excited to discover that this one had won a Caldecott award. I thought this book was fantastic and did a wonderful job displaying emotions of the characters. One thing I particularly like about Madeline books is their representation of a culture that is different than that of the one children typically see. In typical children’s books the characters represent children/adults in a western culture and rarely strays from that idea. I like how this book shows children in a boarding school. Although typical children in America may not be able to relate as much, this teaches an important lesson on diversity. It helps to expose them to various types of living and school situations, which is important for their development. This book is very appropriate for its intended age due the comprehensive nature and expressive illustrations. The text has a poetic flow and rhythm that I think young children would find especially appealing. Also, I think the unique cultural nature of this book will be interesting to children and arouse their curiosity. The content is appropriate, along with appealing, for children in preschool through the elementary years. Like in many children’s picture books, the artwork in ‘Madeline’s Rescue’ sets the emotional tone. The illustrations help to convey the tone and mood of the book. For example, when the dog is sleeping with Madeline, she has a smile on her face while the other children are frowning. This illustrates that Madeline is happy and the other children are sad, this message is conveyed to the children due to the facial expressions in the illustration. Also, the illustrations and artwork help to set up the setting/background information of the book. Without the illustrations, the reader would not know what type of school the children went to and would not understand where the setting was. This is a very important part of the book and helps to capture the children’s attention. Due to this book revolving heavily around an animal, Genevieve (the dog), it may cause the children to have more emotional response than usual. Children are drawn towards animals and naturally feel sympathy and love towards them. Therefore, I think the illustrations would cause the children to have an emotional response. When Genevieve is missing and illustrations display the unsuccessful search, they may feel worry, sadness, and frustration. On the other hand, when illustrations show Genevieve coming home and having puppies, the children may react with happiness and delight. If I were to use this book with children, I would use it independent from any sort of lesson plan. I would read this aloud to a classroom of children when there was any down time during the day and allow them to relax and enjoy a story. However, I would let any questions or reactions serve as a spring board for a possible lesson. For example, if the children questioned why there were all girls, they didn’t see their moms and dads, or they slept at school, I would transform this to an age appropriate lesson on culture and diversity. This story’s presentation is wonderful and has remained relevant since the 1950s. I absolutely adore this story and plan on sharing it with my future elementary school students one day.
- Goodreads rating – 4.23
- REVIEW – Virginia Urban