Wow. The whole time I was reading this book, I was scared for Sam and Ben's safety. Ezra Jack Keats illustrations are so dark and dingy and ominous, I just didn't want the boys out in them. As Sam and Ben made their way through their apartment building, listening to the very ordinary (yet somehow extraordinary) sounds coming from each apartment, hiding from the super, hoping to catch a glimpse of Betsy from Apt. 2, Keats captures something special to me. These boys live in a complex that, to the reader, does not seem like a very pleasant or inviting place. I as and adult would probably not walk around that place the way Sam and Ben do. But to them it's home and, therefore, familiar and somewhat safe I suppose. The story kind of suggests that they've gone exploring around the building before. But man, when Sam turns around to see the milk outside apartment 3 gone, and a voice inside beckons them, taunting them, I broke out in a sweat. Of course, this reaction was a little dramatic considering it's a children's book so nothing too terrible could happen but I think my concerns speak to Keats' ability to create ambiance. I also liked how Keats totally preserved these boys' innocence. The first thing Sam says when the blind man in #3 addresses him is "we didn't take the milk!" which actually made me laugh, even as the story approached its climax. Sam also gets flustered when he finds out the blind man knows a lot about him, including that he has a crush on Betsy, and Ben giggles as Sam gets mad. The best part about this book I think though, is that Sam and Ben are totally enchanted by the blind man's harmonica playing and ask him to go for a walk the next day which makes everyone happy. And it's funny that they were just being little kids and trying to spend more time with something/someone that intrigued them but their gesture obviously meant a lot to the man (as conveyed through the change in his harmonica playing). I think everyone's just as excited as everyone else for the next day and that ending definitely made me smile.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
what's the matter--scared?
Wow. The whole time I was reading this book, I was scared for Sam and Ben's safety. Ezra Jack Keats illustrations are so dark and dingy and ominous, I just didn't want the boys out in them. As Sam and Ben made their way through their apartment building, listening to the very ordinary (yet somehow extraordinary) sounds coming from each apartment, hiding from the super, hoping to catch a glimpse of Betsy from Apt. 2, Keats captures something special to me. These boys live in a complex that, to the reader, does not seem like a very pleasant or inviting place. I as and adult would probably not walk around that place the way Sam and Ben do. But to them it's home and, therefore, familiar and somewhat safe I suppose. The story kind of suggests that they've gone exploring around the building before. But man, when Sam turns around to see the milk outside apartment 3 gone, and a voice inside beckons them, taunting them, I broke out in a sweat. Of course, this reaction was a little dramatic considering it's a children's book so nothing too terrible could happen but I think my concerns speak to Keats' ability to create ambiance. I also liked how Keats totally preserved these boys' innocence. The first thing Sam says when the blind man in #3 addresses him is "we didn't take the milk!" which actually made me laugh, even as the story approached its climax. Sam also gets flustered when he finds out the blind man knows a lot about him, including that he has a crush on Betsy, and Ben giggles as Sam gets mad. The best part about this book I think though, is that Sam and Ben are totally enchanted by the blind man's harmonica playing and ask him to go for a walk the next day which makes everyone happy. And it's funny that they were just being little kids and trying to spend more time with something/someone that intrigued them but their gesture obviously meant a lot to the man (as conveyed through the change in his harmonica playing). I think everyone's just as excited as everyone else for the next day and that ending definitely made me smile.
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