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74th out of 75 books
—
23 voters
Madlenka
by
Peter Sís
A trip around a city block is like a trip around the world!
Peeking out through a die-cut window on the jacket, Madlenka invites the reader to enter her world. And what a world it is! On the surface, it looks like an ordinary city block, but as we meet Madlenka's neighbors -- the French baker, the Indian news vendor, the Italian ice-cream man, the Latin American grocer, a r...more
Peeking out through a die-cut window on the jacket, Madlenka invites the reader to enter her world. And what a world it is! On the surface, it looks like an ordinary city block, but as we meet Madlenka's neighbors -- the French baker, the Indian news vendor, the Italian ice-cream man, the Latin American grocer, a r...more
Hardcover, 48 pages
Published
October 4th 2000
by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
(first published 2000)
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May 20, 2012
Gundula
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
children interested in world geography, children who like picture search books and culture
When Madlenka, who lives in a vibrant and culturally diverse New York City neighbourhood has a loose tooth, she decides to visit her many friends and tell them of this news. Her visiting makes her late, and when her worried parents ask their daughter where she he has been, Madlenka replies that she has been on a trip around the world (and that she has finally lost her tooth).
I love the premise of this sparsely narrated, lushly illustrated picture book. There is enough textual information provide...more
I love the premise of this sparsely narrated, lushly illustrated picture book. There is enough textual information provide...more
I read Madlenka with my 2 year old. Three times at her request. Part of the thrill of the book had a little something to do with the way we would call out Madlenka's name when we were looking for her on every page.
The story is about a little girl whose tooth is loose. She goes around her New York neighborhood sharing this information with neighbors from around the world. I liked how each person cheerfully greeted Madlenka and said something in their native language.
We enjoyed the cutouts. Howeve...more
The story is about a little girl whose tooth is loose. She goes around her New York neighborhood sharing this information with neighbors from around the world. I liked how each person cheerfully greeted Madlenka and said something in their native language.
We enjoyed the cutouts. Howeve...more
Madlenka by Peter Sis follows a small girl as she visits shop owners on her block to tell them about her loose tooth. This trip around the world on her own square block is a multicultural look at the world from New York City.
The sparse text is supplemented with writing on each side of some pictures, making the reader turn the book around to read it, thus changing their perspective. There are lists, with pictures, of what is in a shop, or what is in a country. Each person says hello or greetings...more
The sparse text is supplemented with writing on each side of some pictures, making the reader turn the book around to read it, thus changing their perspective. There are lists, with pictures, of what is in a shop, or what is in a country. Each person says hello or greetings...more
May 26, 2009
Dolly
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
parents reading with their children
Shelves:
2009,
childrens,
other-usa,
france-french,
india,
italy,
spain-spanish-hispanic,
germany,
picture-book-club
This is an interesting story about a micro-cosm of world cultures in a NY neighborhood. Madlenka, Madeline, Maddalena, etc. as she is called by her neighbors has a loose tooth and wants to share the news with everyone. The interesting cultures, foods, and languages that are incorporated into this story (along with the fun writing that is written around the edges of several of the pages) is a creative way to expose children to the diversity and differences among people from different nations and...more
Oct 24, 2008
Mahrya
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Preschool, 1st or 2nd Graders
Shelves:
juvenilia
Sis, Peter, Madlenka, Farrar Straus Giroux, unnumbered pages. Picture book.
Description: Madlenka finds that her tooth is loose and can't wait to tell the whole neighborhood. Living in a city, Madlenka's neighbors are from all over the world. Each of the neighbor's originating country is briefly described as Madlenka travels around the block.
Review: While Madlenka's story is relatively simple, the book's pages are packed with a great deal of visual detail. The neighborhood is shown from a sort o...more
Description: Madlenka finds that her tooth is loose and can't wait to tell the whole neighborhood. Living in a city, Madlenka's neighbors are from all over the world. Each of the neighbor's originating country is briefly described as Madlenka travels around the block.
Review: While Madlenka's story is relatively simple, the book's pages are packed with a great deal of visual detail. The neighborhood is shown from a sort o...more
Apr 16, 2011
Lisa Vegan
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
girls who are losing baby teeth & enjoy learning about different locations around the world
I saw this book and Madlenka's Dog on the library’s shelf and borrowed them both. I started off with a “Huh?” and ended up being charmed. However, a few of the inclusions for various places perplexed me.
Madlenka lives in New York City, and when she finds a loose tooth she goes off to tell everybody in the neighborhood, a diverse neighborhood. Depending on whom she’s relating with, depending on where they’re originally from, they call her variations of her name.
There is a map at the back and th...more
Madlenka lives in New York City, and when she finds a loose tooth she goes off to tell everybody in the neighborhood, a diverse neighborhood. Depending on whom she’s relating with, depending on where they’re originally from, they call her variations of her name.
There is a map at the back and th...more
This books takes a visually exciting look at the multiculturalism of an American city. It introduces children to a variety of cultures quickly, a few foreign words, and, in the end, offers a world map that pinpoints the origins of all of the people Madlenka tells about her loose tooth. (However, it oddly distinguishes some people by country and others by continent. Is this because children are expected to be able to distinguish the German from the Frenchman but not the Korean from the Chinaman o...more
Sep 19, 2011
Kara Roberts
rated it
1 of 5 stars
Shelves:
culture,
early-readers,
family,
fantasy,
fiction,
historical,
light-humor,
picture-book,
progress
Peeking out through a die-cut window on the jacket, Madlenka invites the reader to enter her world. And what a world it is! On the surface, it looks like an ordinary city block, but as we meet Madlenka's neighbors -- the French baker, the Indian news vendor, the Italian ice-cream man, the Latin American grocer, a retired opera singer from Germany, an African American school friend, and the Asian shopkeeper -- and look through die-cut windows to the images and memories they have carried from old...more
Madlenka is a book about a girl’s journey to lose a tooth. The girls come across many emotions about losing the tooth including excitement and fear.
The mix of color and subdued pages tell the story of all the places the main character visits on the journey to lose her tooth. The dark pages have small cut outs to show the color of the previous or next page. Because of the pictures, readers can use predication about the next picture. Just as in reading, prediction is important the pictures with c...more
The mix of color and subdued pages tell the story of all the places the main character visits on the journey to lose her tooth. The dark pages have small cut outs to show the color of the previous or next page. Because of the pictures, readers can use predication about the next picture. Just as in reading, prediction is important the pictures with c...more
“Madlenka” is a children’s book by Peter Sis, illustrator of Rabbit Ears’ “Rumpelstiltskin,” and was a selection for the Goodreads Children’s book Picture Book Club and it details how a young girl named Madlenka goes around the city telling everyone that her tooth is loose while learning about other cultures from her neighbors. “Madlenka” is a truly cute story about exploring different cultures one neighborhood at a time!
When I first started reading this little unique gem of a book, I was totall...more
When I first started reading this little unique gem of a book, I was totall...more
I like Peter Sis as an author, and this book did not disappoint!
This was the story of Madlenka, a girl who lives in a big diverse city. When she has a loose tooth, she wanders around her neighborhood, giving us an introduction to all of her ethnic neighbors! We learn how they say hello, the kinds of foods that come from their country, and so on.
It was a really cute and fun story, and the kids loved hearing all of the different information about the countries. I would definitely read this again!...more
This was the story of Madlenka, a girl who lives in a big diverse city. When she has a loose tooth, she wanders around her neighborhood, giving us an introduction to all of her ethnic neighbors! We learn how they say hello, the kinds of foods that come from their country, and so on.
It was a really cute and fun story, and the kids loved hearing all of the different information about the countries. I would definitely read this again!...more
Illustrator: Peter Sis
Age: Elementary
Summary: Madlenka makes her way around the city exploring the multiculturalism in her neighborhood.
Applications/Uses: Can be used to explore the different cultures all located in one area, one city. Specifically it could be used to look at different words in different languages that Madlenka tells us about. Art projects can be inspired by the intricate pictures of the neighborhood drawn on the pages. Also the pictures show places in relation to other things i...more
Age: Elementary
Summary: Madlenka makes her way around the city exploring the multiculturalism in her neighborhood.
Applications/Uses: Can be used to explore the different cultures all located in one area, one city. Specifically it could be used to look at different words in different languages that Madlenka tells us about. Art projects can be inspired by the intricate pictures of the neighborhood drawn on the pages. Also the pictures show places in relation to other things i...more
Aug 27, 2011
Candice
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Sophie - when she is older
Shelves:
picture-books
Madlenka lives in New York City where many cultures are represented in just one city block. When she finds that her tooth is loose, she sets out to tell some of her favorite people - Mr. Gaston the French baker, Mr. Singh the Indian news stand proprietor, Mr. Ciao the Italian ice cream man, and some others. Each person congratulates Madlenka on her good news and the pages are illustrated with scenes from that person's native land. It's a very imaginative book with a look at different lands. It's...more
First, the other reviewer (on Amazon) is correct when stating that there's something wrong about carefully distinguishing between Italy, Germany, and France... but then having one person from "Latin America" and another from "Asia". These are continents, not countries - continents with diverse ethnic groups and cultures, and, of course, many different nations.
I also found the format of the book, while visually interesting, to be difficult and frustrating to read. It's hard to manage as a read-al...more
I also found the format of the book, while visually interesting, to be difficult and frustrating to read. It's hard to manage as a read-al...more
There was a time in my life when I just did not get Peter Sis at all. I would stare at his illustrations and his text and not understand what the hoopla was.
Well, today I spent a great deal of time dissecting an image out of this book, and I reached an epiphany, where I finally saw what Sis was doing with the book, how the border is a microcosm for the whole, and how each portion of the image represents what he wants the book to mean, down to the color and thickness of the outlines, and it blew...more
Well, today I spent a great deal of time dissecting an image out of this book, and I reached an epiphany, where I finally saw what Sis was doing with the book, how the border is a microcosm for the whole, and how each portion of the image represents what he wants the book to mean, down to the color and thickness of the outlines, and it blew...more
The book is beautifully illustrated and rather hip, making it striking to children and adults. I read this book to my younger sister and brother because they enjoy seeing the different places Madlenka ends up, but I am often conflicted with the content. Mr. Singh owns something of a corner store, the French man, Mr. Gaston owns a bakery, and the stereotypes go on. Nonetheless the book is fun to read and the pictures to take you around the world.
Loved the playful way the text wrapped around the page and how certain cut-our pages allowed for a shift in perspective! As far as the story, I love the multicultural aspect of the title character, Madlenka, telling her neighbors all about her loose tooth! It was sweet how they greeted her in their home language, and how her name changed ever so slightly...I will definitely find a way to incorporate this book into my children's lit course.
I am very disturbed. Madlenka is white, blond & blue-eyed, and pretty, and special. All the other characters are gray, exotic, "other," and not very healthy & happy looking, often to the point of being ugly. Beyond that, the identifying aspects of each neighbor's cultural heritage were stereotypical. There's a lot more to India than than elephants, and a lot more to France than pastries. Eww.
This book is about a girl with a loose tooth and she has to tell everyone. Children could really relate to this because most of them will all have had a loose tooth by first grade. A unique feature is the text goes around some of the pictures, so children get to turn the book around all different ways. It also many different languages and diverse people in the book.
Cute story about a little girl who wants to share her good news of a loose tooth to all her many different friends from around the world. My children loved the maps in the front and finding Madlenka in each map. I liked how each map breaks down into smaller sections so it is easier for children to understand. I also liked how each person introduces things from their culture. I didn't like how they grouped all Asian cultures together where others were specifically one country. It gives the wrong...more
3.5 stars. Madlenka has a loose tooth and travels around her multicultural neighborhood to share the news with each person she meets we learn a little about their culture. Cute but I wished the author had picked a specific country for the people from Africa and Asia like he did with the people from Europe.
Madlenka is amazing. The pictures are facinating. The story is exposes readers to so much valuable cultural and geographical information.
The book is slated for children 3+. I read it with a 9 and 6 year old and both children were entertained by the book. Definitly a good one to have around for re-reading.
The book is slated for children 3+. I read it with a 9 and 6 year old and both children were entertained by the book. Definitly a good one to have around for re-reading.
Madlenka by Peter Sis is a strange picture book. Madlenka discovers that her tooth was loose and wants to tell anybody she can. From that moment she starts flying on an umbrella and going to random places. It didn't make much sense to me. I wouldn't recommend this book. Did not understand the message.
As a children's librarian, I look at LOTS of picture books. So why would I say that I really like this one? Well, it's always intriguing when an author does something interesting with the layout of a book and Peter Sís did just that. I've also read The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain and used it as an example of a non-fiction graphic novel at a presentation I did a few years back (not sure why I didn't already have it on my Goodreads list but I will fix that up soon!) It's amazing that...more
A lovely story about a city girl about to lose her tooth. She heads out to tell all of her neighborhood friends and, in turn, they wish her luck and take her on an international adventure around her own home. Peter Sis created amazing illustrations to go along with his amazing story.
I think that it was interesting to get a peek into Madlenka's imagination. She shares her love for soccer and she wants to know who shares this similar interest. This book shows where soccer originated and how different countries play a similar sport. This would be good to use for discussing different cultures and the origins of different sports.
The reader is treated to extraordinary visual perspectives as Madlenka travels the block, greeting neighbors/shop owners. She travels to France, India, Italy, Germany, Latin America, Egypt, and Asia in her New York City neighborhood.
Madlenka loses her tooth and tells all of her friends in the melting pot of NYC about it. One gets a feel for the many cultures that in some way exist in her neighborhood. A globe at the end of the book showed where everyone had been born.
This is a beautiful book with cut-outs inside that show the illustrations on the next or previous page. It's very unique and has text surrounding the squares, which are throughout the book and showcase the various stores that the girl, Madlenka, travels to in New York City. This is such a wonderful book for children to read as they learn about other cultures and native items from other countries.
Shows Sis' detail in drawing. I liked how it added color each time Madlenka met someone. I also liked the windows in the paper, the pictures around the big picture so you can rotate the book.
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Aug 27, 2011 03:25pm
Aug 28, 2011 09:05pm