Bouki is fat. Bouki is awkward. So why would Malice ask him to dance the complicated Kokioko for the king? Bouki isn’t sure. All he knows is that if he does learn the dance, he can win the king’s money. Seems simple enough. But uh-oh, Bouki should’ve known better than to get involved with greedy Malice. This comical tale introduces readers to Haiti’s famous slapstick characters: the foolish Bouki and the clever Malice. And in the best tradition of the trickster tale, it treats them to something unexpected- a new dance, the hand-clapping, hip-swaying Kokioko.
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From School Library Journal
Grade 2-4?Bouki has found new life in this illustrated edition of a tale from Wolkstein's The Magic Orange Tree and Other Haitian Folktales (Schocken, 1987). Readers familiar with the gullible Bouki and his malicious and tireless nemesis Malice will listen carefully to learn how Bouki will be duped out of the money he wins by dancing the difficult Kokioko for the king. Sweetwater has captured the dazzling color and the flavor of this tropical island and its people. The illustrations of liquid acrylics, watercolor, and gouache, many framed in four-color harlequin-pattern borders, are filled with comical asides. The artist is a talented colorist and interpreter. However, some of her drawings are reminiscent of the stereotypical caricatures of peoples of African descent that make some adults cringe. These illustrations will create some of the same problems as Helen Bannerman's Little Black Sambo. The depiction of characters with very full, bright red lips; black skin; and white eyes is not natural. Understanding and enjoying this subtle trickster tale requires careful listening; therefore, reading or telling it, using Wolkstein's collection, will be a more worthwhile experience.?Marie Wright, University Library, Indianapolis, IN
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Kirkus Reviews
An amusing tale of trickery from Wolkstein's The Magic Orange Tree (1978). A king loves to watch dancers but doesn't want to pay them and so announces a contest with a prize of 5,000 gourdes to the one who can perform the Kokioko, a dance he has created in private. When the greedy trickster Malice spies on the king and learns the dance, he laboriously schools Bouki in the steps; Bouki knows better than to trust Malice but is drawn into the deception because he has ``many little Boukis to feed.'' Bouki wins the gourdes, but flushed with victory, he allows Malice to lead him in another dance during which Madame Malice sneaks off with the winnings. Swirling through the books are Sweetwater's vibrant, folkloric illustrations, one of which whimsically sets two of those many little Boukis in a pair of their father's oversized shorts. (glossary) (Picture book/folklore. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
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