Grandma Chickenlegs (Picture Books) [Hardcover]

Geraldine McCaughrean (Author), Moira Kemp (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1999 | Age Level: 5 and up | Series: Picture Books

Tatia knows she should follow her dying mother's advice and stay away from Grandma Chickenlegs. But when her cruel stepmother orders her to visit the old witch, Tatia must obey. Bravely, she sets out through the woods, with her dear doll, Drooga, as her only companion. Once inside the witch's cottage--a rickety shack that stands on chicken legs--Tatia is guarded by the witch's dog, cat, and a magic elm tree. Grandma Chickenlegs clearly has terrible plans for her. To escape the witch, Tatia must be courageous and clever, and she must rely on the kindness of friends. Moira Kemp's dramatic illustrations, sensitive and funny, make this a classic picture book to be treasured by readers of all ages.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This spirited retelling of a classic Russian folktale about the witch Baba Yaga fairly vibrates with vigorous images. A heartless stepmother who has "eyes as sharp as needles and a soul as thin as a thread" orders sweet Tatia to borrow a needle from Grandma Chickenlegs, certain she is sending Tatia to her death. But through kindness and a little magic, Tatia escapes Grandma Chickenlegs's fearsome clutches. McCaughrean's (The Golden Hoard) language is refreshingly original. The witch's front door, for example, "swung on its hinges, squealing like a thing in pain"; the house itself is a "rickety-rackety shack" that runs around the garden atop "four scratching, paltry poultry legs." Kemp's (the Helpful Betty books) colored pencil illustrations skate perilously close to garish in places and don't live up to the promise of the cover artAa wonderfully outrageous image in shades of orange and chartreuse of two scrawny legs encased in striped stockings and a pair of flagrantly ugly lace-up shoes. But the interior art, too, is larded with witty touches: Grandma's iron-fanged dentures sit in a cup on the nightstand, fabric on her loom bears a broom motif, a chimney cap takes the shape of a witch's hat. Rollicking fun from start to finish. Ages 5-8. (Oct.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 3-A droll and utterly delightful retelling of "Baba Yaga," the Russian folklore equivalent of Cinderella. McCaughrean has changed the names but the plot details remain largely the same. After Tatia's mother dies, her father marries a vain and selfish woman with two daughters. While he is away, the stepmother sends Tatia to the witch Grandma Chickenlegs on the ruse of borrowing a needle. But rather than becoming the witch's dinner as the stepmother had hoped, the child's kindness results in her escape. Once home, she finds that her father has returned. He sends his wife and her daughters away and the two live happily ever after. With its emphasis on description and imagery, McCaughrean's text retains much of the flavor of traditional folklore. But as strong as the text is, it is Kemp's full-page colored-pencil illustrations that steal the show. Using a style that is a pleasing mix of realism and impressionism, the artist captures the fantasy inherent in the tale. With their vivid greens, reds, oranges, and blues, the lively art jumps off the page. The depictions of Grandma Chickenlegs are particularly marvelous. With her bouffant hair, bat eyeglasses, and striped stockings, this witch is more comic than threatening. Unlike other picture-book versions of this tale-Marianna Mayer's Baba Yaga & Vasilisa the Brave (Morrow, 1994) comes to mind-this one is ideally suited for younger children.
Denise Anton Wright, Alliance Library System, Bloomington, IL
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Carolrhoda Books (September 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1575054159
• ISBN-13: 978-1575054155
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,495,031 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

It's 30 years now since I first got published, and 50 since I found out how writing let me step outside my little, everyday world and go wherever I chose - way back in Time, to far distant shores, towards my own, home-made happy ending. Not that all my books are an easy ride. I write adventure, first and foremost, because that's what I enjoyed reading as a child. But since I have published over 150 books now, there are all manner of books in among that number - gorgeously illustated picture books, easy readers, prize winners, teenage books and five adult novels.
The White Darkness won the Printz Award in the USA, which, for as Englishwoman, was the most amazing, startling thrill.
Then there was Peter Pan in Scarlet - official sequel to J M Barrie's Peter Pan, written on behalf of Great Ormond Street Hopsital for Sick Children. I won the chance to write that in a worldwide competition, and because Peter Pan is loved everywhere, my book sold worldwide too. I can't say I expected that when, as a child, I dreamed of being like my older brother and getting a book published one day.
These days I have a husband (who's good at continuity and spelling) and a daughter who is an excellent editor. But she's at the Royal Academy of Dramtic Art now, studying to become an actor. So, naturally, I have turned my hand to writing plays. (So many actors, so few plays!)
My Mum told me, "Never boil your cabbages twice, dear," which was her way of saying, "Don't repeat yourself." So I have tried never to write the same book twice. You'll find all my novels quite different from one another. I have also done lots of retellings of myth, legend, folk and fairy tales, and adapted indigestible classics such as El Cid, the Epic of Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, Moby Dick, Shakespeare and the Pilgrim's Progress.
Something for everyone, you see, my dear young, not-so-young, eccentric, middle-of-the-road, poetical, sad, cheerful, timid or reckless reader.
All they have in common is that they all contain words. If you are allergic to words, you'd best not open the covers.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Grandma Chickenlegs, April 8, 2010

By 

B. Thompson (Georgetown, KY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Grandma Chickenlegs (Picture Books) (Hardcover)

Baba Yaga has never seemed so scary and so funny at the same time. The illustrations are charming, from the green-faced grandma to the chicken-legged house and the story with the perfect resolution is one that children will ask to hear again and again.

4.0 out of 5 stars Lots of Excitement and Color, October 20, 2000

By 

Leila Gorbman (Lake Forest Park, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Grandma Chickenlegs (Picture Books) (Hardcover)

We borrowed Grandma Chickenlegs from the library, and it's the first book in a very long time that my 6 year-old has asked to buy. The writing is more interesting than any of the other versions of Baba Yaga that we've read, and the illustrations are wonderful.

4.0 out of 5 stars A Lot to Learn From Grandma Chickenlegs, May 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Grandma Chickenlegs (Picture Books) (Hardcover)

After reading Grandma Chickenlegs, my two year old daughter could not stop talking about her. Grandma Chickenlegs is a bit frightening, but the polite, friendly girl prevails in the end. I've decided to purchase the hardcover book to give to my daughter when she's a bit older....as a reminder of a book that had a bit of an impact in many ways!