Book Review: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
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What Parents Should Know
There's little story in this traditional poem, but it's
wildly silly, and readers have an open invitation to rhyme
along. Taback's artwork, for all its goofiness, is
mesmerizing.
Common Sense Media Review
Taback adds visual fuel to a folk poem already brimming with
hilarity. While the poem stands on its own as a celebration of
rhyme and tomfoolery, Taback captures all the action in boldly
colored cartoon illustrations that cover the page. Short rhymed
comments from the animals about to be eaten are added as
asides.
The cut-out pages do a great job in focusing the reader's attention and carrying the poem from page to page. Taback also provides a rogue's gallery of flies inside the back cover, a nicely weird finishing touch.
THERE WAS AN OLD LADY ... appeals to a wide range of ages, though one four-year-old responded to the book as "creepy," perhaps because the old lady's eyes rotate wildly and independently in their sockets. Older readers will probably be content with one read-through, though the younger audience will demand repeat performances. No problem--with this degree of busyness and action, the book never stales.
Taback won the Caldecott Medal in 2000 for his Joseph Had a Little Overcoat. A similar sense of humor and bizarre art grace John Scieszka's The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
