SLIS 5420 - Module 1 - Winston the Book Wolf

Bibliography

McGee, M., & Beck, I. (2006). Winston the book wolf. New York: Walker : Distributed to the trade by Holtzbrinck Publishers.

Summary

Winston the Book Wolf is about a wolf with a voracious appetite for words. Because of his culinary love for words, Winston is banned from the local public library due to past incidents with nibbling on the books. While attempting to force his way in to the library, Winston is rescued by a girl named Rosie who teaches him that words are more delicious to eat with his eyes, rather than with his mouth. Armed with the ability to read and the disguise of a grandma, Winston becomes the storyteller at the public library, filling his appetite and helping children at the same time.

Impressions

The book is a very visually pleasing book, though not one that I would classify as a picture book. The background of the main story tells its own small story, brining in characters like the Three Little Pigs (known for their encounters with another wolf) and the Cow jumping over the Moon. The book would be a good book to read along with a child or group of children to point out the other characters and to get them to say some of the words that the wolf particularly likes to “eat”.

Reviews

“A wolf who loves eating words and paper goes to the library to chew up books, despite the fierce librarian's best efforts to keep him out. But a girl called Rosie (who looks very much like Red Riding Hood) shows him that words taste even better when you eat them with your eyes, and teaches him to read. Wolf finds that words are indeed delicious (although admittedly his favourites do rhyme with lunch), and it's not long before he's telling stories and reading aloud. Vibrant and enjoyable artwork, with many fairytale characters to spot, and a die-cut board cover.”

Winston the book wolf. (2006). Bookseller, 32.

“Winston loves to sink his teeth into a good book. Ignoring the "No Wolves Allowed" sign posted on the library door, he rushes inside for a quick nibble. Rosie, a little girl wearing a red hooded sweatshirt, helps him understand that "Words taste even better when you eat them with your eyes" and teaches him to read. With his love of language, Winston quickly develops a taste for "sweet and juicy words like sunset and swoosh and rambunctious." When he runs out of books to read, he borrows a frilly dress and returns to the library disguised as "Granny Winston." He registers for a library card and enthusiastically leads a storyhour session. Beck's charming crosshatched illustrations show a fairy-tale cast of characters. The clever design includes a wolf-bite-sized cutout cover. This is a delicious treat of a tale for young book lovers.”

Ludke, L. (2006). Winston the book wolf. School Library Journal, 52(12), 108-108.

Library Use

As I said in my impressions, I think this would make a very good read aloud book for a group of kids. The sounds and words in the book make for fun interaction while reading and having the kids look for the background characters (like the pigs) makes the children eager to pay attention to see who can find them first.