The stories come from mythology, folklore and fairy tales.
Stories where danger, fear and disaster assault the children, the princess, the protagonists...
The danger may lie in the curse of an angry witch, the abuse of power by a king, or the cruelty of invading warriors...
The reader, however, must always have courage and hope.
Because, wonders never cease in these stories. And, magic events will occur to save the lost children, to transform the frog, or awaken the sleeping princess.
Illustration of Sleeping Beauty by Henry Meynell Rheam
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The Return of Sleeping Beauty -- Dollars for Disney
Maleficent, the Disney reinterpretation of Sleeping Beauty is a wonderous hit with audiences with over $458,880,000 in worldwide ticket sales after only three weeks... despite mixed reviews...
Here are excerpts from four different reviewers. Two are negative, two are positive; however the audience response has been excellent.
Maleficent, is not small in the traditional sense, but rather in the increasingly common contemporary sense: yet another in a string of gazillion-dollar special-effects extravaganzas grafted onto flimsy, nonsensical scripts and featuring an array of two-dimensional performances...Alas, Disney’s subversive retelling of its own 1959 animated classic Sleeping Beauty is an utter mess. At once overblown and under-baked, the movie is a morally and tonally confused collection of sequences that never cohere into a compelling story. -- Christopher Orr, The Atlantic
At least Disney was smart enough to cast Jolie. She has a genuinely heroic presence. If only the movie were equal to it. Grade: C+ (Rated PG for sequences of fantasy action and violence, including frightening images.) -- Peter Rainer, the Christian Science Monitor
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I totally get why many of my fellow critics are giving “Maleficent” mediocre grades: It’s a stylistic mishmash, and almost everything in it resembles one or another of the numerous fantasy movies and TV series of the last 15 years. But Disney’s target audience for this picture is not middle-aged journalists. It’s tween and early-teen girls who are ready to move half a click upward from “Frozen” and “Brave,” along with their moms. That audience is going to be absolutely thrilled by this slightly subversive fable of revenge and female solidarity – I cannot wait to take my 10-year-old daughter — and truth be told, a lot of the brothers, boyfriends and dads who claim they don’t want to come along will enjoy it a lot too. Andrew O'Hehir, Salon
Illustration by Paul Woodroffe
"The formula works. It worked with "Wicked" on stage and it worked with "Frozen" on film —
tilting the storytelling prism so that a new angle on a well-known fairy tale appears in the light. The strategy depends on humanizing characters formerly known as evil, so that another tale of conflicted impulses emerges from the story we know, driven by female antagonist/protagonist hybrids who aren't bad, just misunderstood.
So it goes with 'Maleficent,' the Disney corporation's bombastic, moderately entertaining explanation of why the "queen of all evil" from its 1959 animated "Sleeping Beauty" got that way, and why she wasn't, really...This is almost entirely Angelina Jolie's show. "
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune
Here is a link to the trailer... Step into the world of Maleficent.
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Fairy-tale translations...Always Fast and Loose
We are reminded in the following excerpt from an article/review by Maria Tatar that Maleficent -- Disney's "reinterpretation" of Sleeping Beauty -- is a current example of a long standing tradition...
"Translators of fairy-tale collections have always played fast and loose with the rules of their craft. The “television and pornography” of an earlier age (as John Updike tells us), fairy tales
migrated into the nursery during the nineteenth century, and no one objected when they were edited, adapted, bowdlerized, and cleaned up to suit the younger crowd. The Brothers Grimm did some of that tidying up on their own in six successive editions of the tales, cutting out a story called “Hans Dumm” (in which a young man impregnates women just by looking at them) and removing any causal connection between Rapunzel’s twins and the prince’s visits up to the tower. “A fairy tale is not a text,” Philip Pullman reminds us in his “Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm”—it is always mobile and magnetic, picking up bits and pieces of its cultural surround..."
The above quote is from Maria Tatar's New Yorker Review of Philip Pullman's version of fifty of the most popular tales by the brothers Grimm.
The illustration is by Arthur Rackham.
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Canines For Sevice gives rescued dogs a new life, training them as service dogs for people with disabilities. Based in Wilmington, NC, they have developed a program that benefits the dogs, those who train them, and the disabled people who become the beneficiaries of having a custom trained service dog...Canines for Service describes their approach in this way...
"Triple Win philosophy- Rescuing shelter dogs, rehabilitating military prisoners and revitalizing wounded and injured Veterans."
Dogs trained for veterans by military prisoners
If you were to visit the Naval Consolidated Brig Charleston, you would find prisoners training the dogs. "The training of a Canines for Veterans service dog takes about one year. Rescue dogs are trained by military prisoners and will learn over 90 commands including basic obedience, intermediate skills like retrieving items and advanced skills such as opening doors."
Dogs for all disabled vets...Canines for Veterans
"Service members or Veterans with a disability including mobility limitations, traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder are invited to apply for a Canines for Veterans service dog. We serve Veterans from all branches of the Armed Forces. Active duty service members may be eligible for a service dog only if they can no longer be deployed. Canines for Veterans does not charge a
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“There are some themes, some subjects, too large for adult fiction; they can only be dealt with adequately in a children’s book.” -- Phillip Pullman prolific author of classic children's books including an updated version of Grimm's Fairy Tales.
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Planet Of The Dogs
Our story begins long, long ago, before there were dogs on Planet Earth.
There was plenty of space in those days for people to settle and grow things. Many of the places where people lived were very beautiful. There were clear lakes and cool streams with lots of fish. There were fields and woods with game to hunt. And there were rolling hills and open plains with plants growing everywhere.
Many people settled in these places of abundance and prospered. At first they had small gardens. As villages and towns continued to grow, more seeds were planted until the fertile land was often covered with corn or rice or wheat or vegetables....
And then there came a time when the abundance and happiness found on Planet Earth were threatened by people like the warrior tribes of Stone City. They had forgotten how to love. They took food, coins and beautiful objects from people and often hurt them. Their numbers began to grow and soon they were taking the homes, land, and farms where peaceful people lived.
Where once there had been harmony and friendship, there was now fear, anger, and unhappiness. Something had to be done -- but what could anybody do? No one knew it at that time, but help would come from far, far away, from the Planet of the Dogs.
Our books are available through your favorite independent bookstore or via Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Powell's and many more...
Read Sample Chapters of the Planet Of The Dogs Series.
Librarians, teachers, bookstores...Order Planet Of The Dogs, Castle In The Mist, and Snow Valley Heroes, A Christmas Tale, through Ingram with a full professional discount.
Therapy reading dog owners, librarians and teachers with therapy reading dog programs -- you can write us at [email protected] and we will send you free reader copies from the Planet of the Dogs Series...Read Dog Books to Dogs....The photo is courtesy of Pat Christiansen, Therapy Dogs United; scroll down to read more about this wonderful therapy dog organization.
The book cover and illustration are by Stella Mustanoja-McCarty.
Any one of these books would make for a delightful—and one would assume cherished—gift for any child. All three would be an amazing reading adventure. Darlene Arden, educator, dog expert, and author of Small Dogs Big Hearts
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Wonders from the Secret Forests...
Wilhelm Grimm noted that these (fairy tales) were the "last echoes of pagan myths." He went on:" A world of magic is opened up before us, one which still exists among us in
secret forests, in underground caves, and in the deepest sea, and it is still visible to children". And what we find inside these secret forests, caves, and seas is not just a poetical heritage, but a personal one as well. For fairy tales are full of families, full of parents who bequeath a sense of self to children, full of ancestors and heirs whose lives play out, in little, the life of a nation from childhood to maturity. -
Seth Lerer, in the chapter Straw into Gold from Children's Literature, A Reader's History from Aesop to Harry Potter
The illustration is by George Cruickshank.
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Parents worry too much about what children read
said Judy Blume -- a wonder in her time and still going strong -- in an article in The Telegraph By Hannah Furness, Arts Correspondent...here is an excerpt.
"Blume, now 76, has sold more than 80 million books worldwide and her work has been translated into 31 languages.Her novels, which confront issues of teenage sex, racism, divorce, bullying, puberty and masturbation, were considered shocking at the time, and are remembered by a generation of women for teaching them the facts of life.
She told the audience that parents should be less concerned about the suitability of their children's reading material, concentrating more on simply getting them to love books...
'A lot of people worry much too much about what their children are reading,"'she said.
'A lot of people will want to control everything in their children's lives, or everything in other people's children's lives.
'If a child picks up a book and reads something she has a question about, if she can go to her parents, great.
'Or else they will read right over it. It won't mean a thing.
'They are very good, I think, at monitoring what makes them feel uncomfortable. If something makes them feel uncomfortable they will put it down.' "
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Way Cool Dogs is filled with information, insights and dog news... here is an excerpt from an article on...
Traveling With Your Dog: Five Tips for a Safe, Fun Trip
Like many people, you may view your pet as a part of the family that can’t be left behind when you go on vacation, and the good news is it's a very workable idea to travel with a dog. The key to making any vacation enjoyable for both dogs and humans is preparation....
Read it all on Way Cool Dogs
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Three wonders from the Winnie-the-Pooh Books
“Weeds are flowers, too, once you get to know them."
"Sometimes,' said Pooh, 'the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."
“I think we dream so we don’t have to be apart for so long. If we’re in each other’s dreams, we can be together all the time.”
A.A. Milne
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Circling the Waggins by C.A. Wulff
More than twenty years of performing pet rescues could wear
anyone down. Especially when the pets that end up being permanent residents in your home are the most irascible, insane and ridiculously un-adoptable pets known to man. Circling the Waggins follows two middle aged women as they maneuver through one unexpected pet debacle after another in a rugged and isolated cabin in a National Park. They emerge from a dark and difficult time as they discover that even the tiniest of lives is precious; heartache and joy go hand-in-hand, and love is an eternal circle of wagging tails.
The photo is of three of the characters you will meet in the book. You will also meet humans and other critters in the eternal circle of wagging tails. Dog Lovers -- Read the reviews on Amazon.
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What kind of reader were you as a child? And what were your favorite childhood books?
Here is an excerpt from the NYTimes interview with Alice Hoffman author of the Museum of Extraordinary Things.
"I was a fanatical escapist reader, as I am now a fanatical escapist writer. I always had a book with me, no matter what, on the bus, in line for the movies. I still love to read the same books I loved as a child. Anything written by Edward Eager, especially “Half Magic”; the Borrowers series; “Mary Poppins.” Grimms’ fairy tales, so psychologically true a child reader intuits their deeper personal meaning. Those fairy tale themes are at the heart of many of my own books."
“The Museum of Extraordinary Things” will not disappoint readers longing to be swept up by a lavish tale about strange yet sympathetic people, haunted by the past and living in bizarre circumstances." Katherine Weber in her NY Times book review
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China...June is the month for Planet Of The Dogs In China
Our Chinese publisher, Chongxian Books Co. LTD, has announced that the Planet Of The Dogs is being released this month in mainland China.
The color illustration (above) is from the Chinese version. New illustrations were produced for all the Planet Of The Dogs books
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Does your dog make you laugh ? If so, you may want to look at the study by Robin Valeri, Department of Psychology,St.Bonaventure University, on the "Relationship between Pet Ownership and Laughter". The study includes cats and is based on research and substantial data.
The dog in the photo is Rocket Boy, one of the dogs featured in C.A. Wulff's Circling the Waggins.
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Therapy Dogs United ...where the wonders of the canine connection never cease
Therapy Dogs United (TDU) provides healing help and loving canine connections to thousands of people in Northwestern PA, and Western NY. They offer a full range of therapy dog services ranging from relieving loneliness in nursing facilities to programs that help children with autism, Downs syndrome and other difficult disabilities.
Who do they serve?
Here is an excerpt from the TDU website...
"Our dedicated team of certified volunteers work hand-in-hand with medical, educational, and social service professionals or one-on-one with patients to provide therapeutic and physical therapy. TDU makes daily visits to schools and learning institutions, book stores, homeless shelters, senior and nursing communities, hospice facilities, family service organizations, reading clubs, rehabilitation centers, and beyond... We (also) visit hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, homeless shelters, and homes for youth at risk..."
Here is the link to see the wonderful Therapy Dogs United dogs at work with young and old: TDU Dogs
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"Why it's simply impassible!
Alice: Why, don't you mean impossible?
Door: No, I do mean impassible. (chuckles) Nothing's impossible!”
Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass
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Educating Alice: A dedicated teacher is disturbed...
Monica Edinger is a dedicated , book loving teacher. Here is an excerpt from her blog, Educating Alice (link below), regarding her concern for the mediocre teaching materials she found on the Achieve the Core website.
As a teacher in a private school I am not currently required to follow the Common Core State Standards. That said, because I am a teacher, I am following closely the discussion about them, their implementation, issues, and so forth. One resource I’ve come across is the Achieve the Core website created by Student Achievement Partners, who describe themselves as '….a non-profit organization working to support teachers across the country in their efforts to realize the promise of the Common Core State Standards for all students.'...
I decided to check out a few of the ELA/Literacy “Common Core-aligned sample lessons with explanations and supporting resources.” And the ones I looked at were so full of problems that it made me wonder who is vetting them as worthy of teacher use.
One that I looked at particularly closely is on Charlotte’s Web. (I came across it by looking through their lessons for fourth grade. I can’t link to it directly, I’m afraid, as it takes you to a word document of the lesson.) Because I feel I’m pretty expert at the teaching of Charlotte’s Web, I was curious about the lesson they had on the book. And I found it very problematic. The questions seem to suggest it is a play version of the book, but no reference for it is cited. No edition of the book or play is given although there are page numbers given for various questions. The level of questioning is simplistic, surprising given the desire of the Common Core creators to make experiences with reading more complex and rigorous. Since I feel White’s book is a wonderful one to use with children as an entry into close reading, the lack of it and very low-level engagement recommended in this particular lesson was something I found despiriting (sic). It looked similar to the many poor lessons about the book I have seen over the years.
Here is the link to read it all: Edinger
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What should you do, what can you do, if you see an injured dog or one in distress?
For answers, examples, true stories and more, visit Sunbear Squad...Let the experience of compassionate dog lovers guide you...free Wallet Cards & Pocket Posters, Informative and practical guidance...Visit SunBear Squad
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"Man himself cannot express love and humility by external signs so plainly as does a dog, when with drooping ears, hanging lips, flexous body, and wagging tail, he meets his beloved master." Charles Darwin (1809-1882)
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