A Classic Collectible Pop-Up™ Matthew Reinhart's resplendent retelling of Cinderella comes to life with intricate pop-ups, foil, ribbons, acetate, and amazing dimensional surprises. The stunning transformation of a pumpkin into a magnificent coach, a rat into a coachman, and Cinderella into a beautiful princess is pure magic.
Matthew Christian Reinhart was born September 21, 1971 to Gary and Judith Reinhart in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The son of a farmer, his father Gary joined the Navy and so the family moved around the country, from Florida to Texas to Illinois to California to Virginia and then South Carolina. Judith and Matthew followed along, and soon to be joined by his little sister, Erin.
Art was always a huge part of Matthew Reinhart’s young life. Drawing pictures and making crafts were his favorite activities, in school and out. Matthew drew whenever and wherever he got the chance; in fact, school notebooks often had more drawings than notes! He loved drawing and reading about all creatures and animals so much, he drew them everywhere!
After high school, chose to study biology in preparation for medical school, thinking a career in art was too far-fetched. College life at Clemson University in South Carolina was busy for Matthew, but he was never really satisfied. Medicine was not his true calling, so along with his required science classes, Matthew took various art courses to build up his portfolio.
After graduating college, moved to New York City for a year before starting medical school. There, he met acclaimed children’s book author Robert Sabuda doing volunteer work together for a local community center. Robert's book, Christmas Alphabet had just released to rave reviews, and he convinced Matthew to follow his true calling. The following year, Matthew attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. as an industrial design major (concentrating in toy design).
Pratt was fantastic experience for him, but his initial dreams of being a toy designer soon transformed into paper engineer. After working with Robert on books like The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, A B C Disney and Movable Mother Goose. Matthew made his first big break into the pop-up world with The Pop Up Book Of Phobias. Many books collaborations have followed, including a trilogy of New York Times best-selling Encyclopedia Prehistorica and the following series Encyclopedia Mythologica with Robert Sabuda, along with Mommy?, co-authored with the renowned Maurice Sendak and Brava Strega Nona with the ageless Tomie DePaola. His solo pop-up books include The Ark, Animal Popposites, The Jungle Book, Cinderella, The Pop-Up Book of Nursery Rhymes, and STAR WARS: Pop-Up Guide to the Galaxy. He continues to work and live in New York City, cutting, taping and folding paper into pop-up masterpieces.
This is a beautiful rendition of Cinderella in the pop-up style. The art work is amazing, and the pop-up style (paper engineering) is so cleverly done. Pop-up books have always been a favorite of mine. I love the interaction and the 3D effect. And, of course, I love the story. Very well done! Enjoyed immensely!!
CATEGORIES/GENRES FOR THIS CLASS FULFILLED BY THIS BOOK: Folktale/Fairytale
ESTIMATE OF GRADE LEVEL INTEREST: 3-6
ESTIMATE OF READING LEVEL: 7.3
BRIEF DESCRIPTION: Cinderella, a poorly treated girl, magically meets a prince at a ball who is searching for a bride.
IDENTIFY AT LEAST 2 CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS GENRE AND SUBGENRE AND DISCUSS HOW THEY APPEAR IN YOUR BOOK: Folktales often end happily, and in this case, Cinderella ends up marrying and living happily ever after in a flashy purple castle. Folktales also often have elements where poetic justice prevails, and in this case, the characters who are mean to Cinderella end up not being liked by the prince, and the prince takes Cinderella as his bride instead.
IN WHAT WAYS AND HOW WELL DOES THE BOOK AS A WHOLE SERVE ITS INTENDED AUDIENCE?: The pop-up illustrations represent a more modern Cinderella because the bright watercolors give it more of a feeling of the modern day, rather than a tired tale that has been retold throughout the ages. Students in grades 3-6 might be attracted to this updated look where flashy metallic details and sparkles and bright swirly pastels grace nearly every page. The action in the classic story is even more enhanced by the ingenious pop-ups where just by turning a page, for example, a see-through plastic shoe, meant to be the real glass slipper Cinderella wore to the ball, is fitted on her foot as the page is turned by the reader. The ballroom scene comes to life when cut-outs of couples dancing twirl when the full spread page opens. The only disappointment may be the lack of interactive or manual tabs to pull to make the story come to life, as almost all of the pop-up illustrations just need to have the page turned in order for the illustrations and 3D effects to appear.
AWARDS IF ANY: None
LINKS TO PUBLISHED REVIEWS FROM PROFESSIONAL SOURCES: Book Links, 07/01/07 Booklist, 11/01/05 Kirkus Reviews, 10/15/05
I thought this pop-up book was by Robert Sabuda and it was only in looking it up here on Goodreads that I realized it's not. I take it maybe they are illustrating partners? At any rate, my kids love this pop-up book, and I really appreciate all of its intricacies. This is technically F's book, but even though she's only 3 she's very gentle with it. I think she understands that it's special, and a treat to read.
This book tells the classic Cinderella story, but adds such excitement with the fabulous pop-up pictures. My favorite one was with the horse and carriage, and I think this book really brings the story to life.