Rude Stories

Gr 2—4—Andrews has added her own special touches to a collection of humorous, traditional tales from cultures around the world. The rudeness in the stories takes different forms: in an original tale, two sisters compete in a belching contest. In a Swahili tale, a girl known for her kindness finally speaks her mind to her family, and in another from Japan, a man receives a magical fan from a goblin. Its special power? Waving it will increase or decrease the size of someone's bottom. Readers familiar with Cynthia DeFelice's The Dancing Skeleton (Atheneum, 1989) will recognize a variation here, but the other tales are less-well-known. Source notes are appended. As in the companion book, Stories at the Door (Tundra, 2007), a selection of witty, original poems is interspersed among the stories. It is clear that Andrews is a storyteller as well as a writer; the selections have the flavor of the oral tradition. Blake's colorful spot art and occasional full-page illustrations are a perfect match for the irreverent humor. Recommend this for kids who appreciate Roald Dahl or Roddy Doyle's The Giggler Treatment (Scholastic, 2000).—Jackie Partch, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR