Customer Reviews

Strega Nona... and More Caldecott Award-Winning Folk Tales (Scholastic Video Collection)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Because my son (who is actually only 15 months old, much younger than the age recommendation) loves the Scholastic Where the Wild Things Are DVD, we decided to try another Scholastic Video. We both couldn't be more pleased. The story is simply animated and is accompanied by charming music. The narrator's voice is perfect and the adaptation of the story very close to the original. Joseph Had a Little Overcoat is also well done, but Stone Soup, because of the sparse illustrations (just black line drawings with a little red) and lack of animation, is not quite as enjoyable. I look forward to more DVDs from this collection.

I read the Stega Nona series to my 10 year old when he was little and relished sharing it again with my 3-year-old. The first book, Strega Nona, was the best of the series and when we saw this DVD adaptation, we were very excited to watch. However, the story misses singing or even reading the "pasta pot" song. This was the best part of our reading and my kids enjoyed singing it with me during story hour. The video brings to life a wonderful story, but misses our favorite part of the book. Great alternative to Dora, but will not replace story time.

I recently ordered the Scholastic Treasury of 100 Classic Stories DVDs. Since I was impatient to get the order, I went to the library and checked out the Strega Nona DVD. This is a wonderful, lovely collection of stories. My favorite is "Joseph Had a Little Overcoat" from an old Yiddish song. I love that the story teaches how to be frugal, and how to make "something" out of "nothing". (You will have to read or see this story to understand what I mean). The book is worth buying too with interesting "cut outs", and even includes the song that inspired the book.

"Stone Soup" also teaches how to make "something" out of "nothing", and that if everyone shares you can come up with something rather grand. One reviewer pointed out how "Stone Soup" lacked some of the action, and colorful illustrations of the other stories, but it is true to the original book which was written about fifty years ago.

"Strega Nona" is delightful! She is a wise, old woman, even if she is a witch (which I'm not fond of), but the story is set in Italy, and is a good folk tale.

Check out the Bonus stories. This is a great addition to your child's video collection.

Grand kids love this story, so they really enjoyed seeing it come to life. Other folk tales on this DVD were also enjoyed. Great way to add fun to books they have read.

Great telling of Tomie dePaola story, as well as other award winners. I used this for my library classes, grades 1-3. Very accurate telling, sometimes I read the book aloud, then show the video. Children usually want to read a Tomie dePaola book after the lesson!!!

My 3.5-year-old daughter loves this DVD. It is well done and you really can't go wrong with such a great book to begin with.