IMAGINATIVE WORLD BUILDING
Bell’s very own handmade toy inspired her book about Sock Monkey.
Bell’s very own handmade toy inspired her book about Sock Monkey.
The other characters in the series, Blue Pig, Froggie, Miss Bunn, and Sock
Buddy are based on real handmade stuffed toys too. This is such a fun and clever story idea because kids love their toys and
bring them to life in imaginative play all the time.
The opening in each book introduces the main character, the inciting
incident, and the story problem – everything needed for a young audience to pay attention and want to know what's going to happen next.
The first book in the series, Sock Monkey Goes to Hollywood: A Star is Bathed , (reprinted as Sock Monkey Takes a
Bath in 2015), Bell introduces Sock Monkey, a famous toy actor, who receives a
special delivery. On the next page readers feel his joy when he’s nominated for an
award and invited to the award ceremony.
Yippee!
They experience a very different emotion when
it’s revealed that the “invitation made
him gasp.” On the invitation the illustration shows - “Nominees
MUST be Clean.” And from that
opening, readers want to know, will Sock Monkey clean up so he can go to
Hollywood?
In Sock Monkey Boogie Woogie: A Friend Is Made , the character, inciting
incident, and problem all appear on the very first page.
But there
was one problem. He needed a dance partner.”
From that opening, a young audience will want to
know if Sock Monkey will find a dance partner so he can go to the Big Celebrity
Dance.
This is a fun series that shows how Bell uses few
words in each opening so young
children get invested in her character's journey right away.
UNIVERSAL THEMES
Bell’s unique storytelling addresses universal themes such as kindness, generosity, friendship, loneliness, perception, and perseverance through quirky characters.
Can an enormousbee who wears a wig help kids
understand that it’s okay to “bee” yourself? That’s exactly the message Bell delivers in Bee-Wigged.
“ Jerry Bee loved
people.
Bell’s unique storytelling addresses universal themes such as kindness, generosity, friendship, loneliness, perception, and perseverance through quirky characters.
Can an enormous
But people did not
love Jerry Bee .
For another, he was
the most enormous bee…”
Can a very tiny, itty bitty dog looking for itty bitty things to make a bone he carved into a cozy home help kids realize it's possible for someone itty bitty to find their place in a great big world?
Juxtaposition: Putting two things together that don’t normally go together like a donkey and a yam!
Misunderstandings and conflict: Yam is constantly correcting Donkey’s poor use of grammar as they fight over the proper way to speak.
Wordplay: And what sets off this “who’s on first” comedy routine is Donkey's misuse of yam to Yam, “I
“What did you say? “ I yam
a donkey”?
The proper way to say
that is I am a donkey.”
A great twist: The ending and moral of this story is surprising and hilarious!
“If you is going to
be eaten , good grammar don't matter.”
Bell's new book that releases on November 26th You Loves Ewe also features Donkey and Yam and introduces a new character, Ewe. Grammar-challenged
Donkey finds it difficult to understand the concept of homonyms as explained by
Yam.
Dig deep into the picture books by
Cece Bell to study how she uses imagination, quirky characters, humor, and more
to address universal themes while adding emotion to every page. And you'll laugh out loud too!
I can't wait for You loves Ewe! I Yam a Donkey is one of my favorite books - a great read aloud.
ReplyDeleteMe too. I know it will be as funny as the I Yam A Donkey! Cece is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteFun! All of them!
ReplyDeleteYES!
DeleteYay! I'm so happy that I Yam a Donkey will have a sequel. Thanks for this!
ReplyDeleteAgree! And you are welcome.
Delete