And the reading challenge continues! As stated in a previous post, my librarian friend Ashley Lambacher of the Book Talker and I are hosting the Buckeye Book Award Reading Challenge. Our goal is to read all the past winners from the children’s book category in chronological order from 1982 to the present. I will read the K-2 picture book winners and Ashley will read the 4-8/3-5 chapter book winners. Because 1994 was skipped, today I continue my challenge by reading the winner of the K-2 Buckeye Book Award in 1995, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairy Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka.
The Stinky Cheese Man is one of many genius books by Jon Scieszka. Similar to The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, the illustrations are arranged unconventionally and the story is uniquely entertaining. Scieszka takes familiar fairy tales and adds his own variations. With individual tales, such as The Really Ugly Duckling and Little Red Running Shorts, this collection of short stories has something to please every reader. The Stinky Cheese Man deconstructs not only the tradition of the fairy tale but also the entire notion of a book. The narrator, Jack, makes a mockery of the title page, the table of contents, and even the endpaper. Characters slide in and out of tales; Cinderella rebuffs Rumpelstiltskin, and the Giant at the top of the beanstalk snacks on the Little Red Hen. There are no lessons or morals to be learned - just good, sarcastic fun that leaves readers laughing out loud!
Ashley, your upcoming 1993 Buckeye Book Award read is Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones by Schwartz. This spooky tale might be best read beside your campfire!
Would you like to join Ashley and I as we read through Ohio’s award winning books? We welcome any and all who are interested in participating in this fun reading challenge. For more information, click here.
The Stinky Cheese Man! I remember when this book came out when I was 10, and my teacher and librarian both read it to us. Afterwards, I checked it out several times on my own. Jon Scieszka truly has a talent with his humor and wit, and the illustrations are as wonderfully dysfunctional as the stories. I love reading this book aloud!
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