Just So Stories: for Little Children, Volume II

Reviewed by: Dorothy Hall-Riddle - N/A, Cumberland, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: May 10, 2015

Review

This is the second volume of Kipling's timeless tales Wallace has taken on with beautifully detailed and imaginative illustrations. Written over a century ago, the stories of 'why things are the way they are' all around the world will delight new generations of readers for years to come. The short stories are perfect read-alouds and students could come up with their own illustrations to accompany the text. The illustrations were created with watercolors, pencil crayons, pastel pencil, and chalk and take on an ethereal or dream-like quality with delicate colors which open up the reader's imagination. These illustrations might give the stories a new lease on life and appeal to a wider audience, as the original volumes were illustrated in black and white. At the end of the book, after the six stories, the illustrator includes notes on each story and the illustrations he created. He explains the choices he made, makes connections within and between the stories, and helps readers further understand Kipling's writings and intentions.

Overall Book Score: very good