John Cech

Young Django lived with his parents and Grandma Thelma in the cypress swamps of Florida, where he grew up surrounded by a symphony of different sounds. Given his grandfather's fiddle, he made music that spoke to the animals, and brought them to his side. When his inattention to his chores led his parents and grandmother to put the fiddle away, it seemed his music was at an end. Then a terrible hurricane struck, and Django used his music to guide the local animals to safety around their home, show more located on a local hill...

Django is the third picture book I have read from author John Cech, a professor of English and Children's Literature at the University of Florida in Gainesville, following upon his Aesop's Fables and The Twelve Dancing Princesses. It also the one I have enjoyed most, both because of his story, and because of the accompanying folk-art illustrations of Florida artist Sharon McGinley-Nally. Apparently the tale presented here is a loose adaptation of a Florida legend concerning the folk musician and fiddler, Cush Holston**, who was said to play with such beauty that the animals would gather round him. As someone who is intrigued by the idea of using music to communicate with animals—I have enjoyed numerous online videos featuring the reaction of various animals when music is played to them—I was charmed by the idea of Django's fiddle-playing leading the wildlife to safety. I also was quite impressed by McGinley-Nally's artwork, created in vivid hues using liquid watercolors on paper first treated with a mixture of malt, chicory, rye, figs and beet root. The results is a series of paintings that are both interesting and beautiful. I loved the use of color, the human and animal figures, the decorative borders around many of the scenes, and the fact that the pages themselves are a lovely sepia tone. Although I enjoyed the previous books I have read from Cech, I wasn't deeply impressed by them, as I was by this one. I will definitely be seeking out more of his work (as well as other works of Florida folklore), and will certainly try to track more of McGinley-Nally's work as well. Recommended to young folklore enthusiasts, as well as to children taking up a musical instrument.

**Cush Holston doesn't appear to have every recorded any albums, but he did perform at the Florida Folk Festival in the early years, and there are some recordings of his performances there, that readers interested in his music can listen to, both on Youtube and on the Slippery Hill website, devoted to old-time fiddle and banjo recordings. show less

The Twelve Dancing Princesses is one of those fairytales that somehow failed to make an impression upon me as a child, although I read the complete Brothers Grimm when I was young, and must have encountered it at some point. However that may be, I have no childhood memory of it, and first "discovered" it as an adult. Since then, I seem to be forever stumbling upon some new (or new to me) version of it. Marianna Mayer's retelling, accompanied by Kinuko Craft's fabulous artwork, is undoubtedly show more the finest of these, although I also have an appreciation for the versions done by Ruth Sanderson, Jane Ray, Dorothee Duntze, and the brilliant Laszlo Gal.

This new retelling, from the pen of John Cech, a professor of English and Children's Literature at the University of Florida in Gainesville, is accompanied by the illustrations of Lucy Corvino. I found the narrative engaging, although I did wonder a bit at Cech's decision to attribute the princesses' nighttime activities to their father's grief-inspired aversion to dancing, rather than to an enchantment. But I appreciated his inclusion of a detailed analysis of the folk motifs to be found in this tale - something not always seen in children's books of this kind. I thought that Corvino's illustrations sometimes had a blurry, indistinct quality, although a few of her panels - particularly those featuring the eldest princess - had a sharp, fey quality which was very appealing. All in all, a worthy contribution to the growing body of books devoted to this enchanting tale. show less

Thirty-six of the classic fables commonly attributed to Aesop are collected in this new picture-book anthology from John Cech, a professor of children's literature at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Here are many old favorites, from The Ant and the Grasshopper to The City Mouse and the Country Mouse, as well as some less well-known selections, like The Boy Who Went Swimming and The Bald Knight. Each fable is presented, in concise form, on a single page, with an accompanying show more illustration by Martin Jarrie.

Although this new collection was well-formatted and well-illustrated, my intensive Aesop project earlier in the year exposed me to so many wonderful fable collections, that I found myself only moderately impressed by Cech's book. Some of his adaptations felt a little too concise, and while I liked Jarrie's stylized illustrations, I have seen other Aesop titles - that done by Jerry Pinkney, for instance, or Milo Winter - whose artwork I truly loved. It's engaging enough, this new Aesop's Fables won't be going on any of my "best of" lists. show less

A gorgeous book about a heartbreaking and inspiring journey from Russia to America by Feodosia Ivanovna Belevtsov in 1930s. She survived Russian revolution, Stalin regime, hunger and was captured by retreating Nazis. This incredible story sheds light on devastating times and devastating things people had to go through. The illustrations are beyond magical. Not only that they artistically capture Russian culture and folklore in an organic, song-like way, but they are full of love and kindness show more that shine through this story. The book looks like a magic mural full of old sweet fairy tale characters. show less