I checked this book out because I'm familiar with the story (who isn't!) and thought that a different twist on it would be interesting. I wasn't expecting it to be so confusing. I love the back story that it provides for the story, however, I do think that this book would be difficult for little kids to track with. I wouldn't read them aloud to a class because there's too many things that require your attention before you can move on to the next page, and that's not the types of books that I'd deem best to be read to a class during read aloud. ( )

The page layout and complexity of rhymes make this a picture book that is more appropriate for older kids. ( )

"Miss Muffet, or What Came After" by Marilyn Singer is a whimsical tale of nursery rhymes and fairy tales intertwining to create a new story. Miss Muffet becomes tired with eating curds and whey and sets on an adventure finding new friends such as little bo peep along the way. I enjoy stories that take a new look at an old and familiar story such as these. I think children enjoy seeing characters they are comfortable with in new and exciting ways. I enjoyed this book and thought it was a fun spun on some classic characters. ( )

Miss Muffet's real name is Patience and she has quite a dilemma. She doesn't want to simply eat curds and whey or even act like a proper lady. All she wants to do is play the fiddle. Her mother wishes she would proper and polite and her father wishes she would find interest in bugs like he does, but that is not her fate. Accompanied by the spider that scared her in the beginning of this tale they run off with her fiddle in search of something different. They run into little Bo Peep who has also abandoned her life as a sheperdess to play her fiddle. Patience begs her to teach her how to better play her fiddle and the two begin to play together. Meanwhile at King Cole's castle he discovers that all his fiddle players are sick and won't be able to play at his dinner that night. He sends out his servants to find a new trio that can play at his party. The servants discover Patience and Bo Peep in a field playing together and they enlist their help to find a third person to add to their duo. In town they run into another fiddle player who finishes their trio and all three and the spider are able to play at King Cole's castle. ( )

This one is a little odd, but enjoyable. It takes the form of a play, complete with narration on the setting and a chorus to narrate the action. The story incorporates several nursery rhymes. It is quite wordy and would be difficult for a read-aloud. ( )