Customer Reviews

Paperboy

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When you are sleeping & the sky is dark & the streets shadowy, someone & his dog are up, working & happy.

Happy are they at work before dawn, the dog running after scents & growling at critters & the boy pedaling his bike, thinking his thoughts & tossing the morning paper to house after house, as slowly, softly another day dawns.

Dav Pilkey's pictures & story capture the shadows & colors of when night turns toward day & while everyone is tumbling out of their beds, the paperboy & his dog are tumbling back into theirs.

A fine way to introduce children to the idea of working for a living, of being responsible, of doing the work until it's done & the fun.

It's a bad sign when a book published in 1996 already conjures up feelings of nostalgia. Remember paperboys? How kids could earn a little extra money by getting that crack-of-dawn delivery job that put a few more coffers in their pockets? Nowadays, many paperboys have been replaced with adults. Adults with cars, no less. Looking back at Dav "Captain Underpants" Pilkey's Caldecott Honor title, "The Paperboy", the reader is transported to those ethereal moments that exist for some kids even today just before the sun rises. It's a story about a boy, his dog, his job, and that's about it. No grand statements or surprising moments. Just a lovely look at a once common suburban ideal.

On the title page we see a dull gray truck leaving the loading dock of the Morning Star Gazette in (what most of us would call) the dead of night. It makes its delivery of a stack of newspapers at one of the many houses in a particular suburb. The first sentence sets the mood perfectly. "The mornings of the paperboy are still dark and they are always cold even in the summer". A boy forces himself out of his warm bed and makes some breakfast for himself and his corgi dog. After bundling the papers up, the kid and his faithful companion make the familiar route and think their private thoughts. Just as the sun is rising, boy and dog have finished their job and they return home just as everyone else in the family is waking up. The paperboy and his pet, however, climb back into the bed, "which is still warm" and dream of soaring through the night sky.

The book records each small action that the paperboy accomplishes with a small unassuming note of triumph. Sentences like, "It's hard to ride a bike when you are loaded down with newspapers. But the paperboy has learned how to do this, and he is good at it". Also, getting out of a warm bed to do a job is exceedingly difficult to accomplish sometimes, "but they do". Kids don't have to ford rivers or climb mountains to be brave. Just making yourself to do something uncomfortable or unpleasant can be heroism enough. Pilkey recognizes this and celebrates it with understated aplomb.

I loved the fact that the dog in this book was a corgi, by the way. There just aren't enough corgis in children's literature, gol durn it! Aside from Tasha Tudor's books ("A Time To Keep" comes to mind), corgis are the most ignored picture book dogs out there. This is hard to figure when you consider just how cute and cuddly they are. They're the world's only permanent puppies! So if you happen to be a children's illustrator and you feel you have a certain amount of clout in the publishing world (ho ho!), get the word out: We Need More Corgis.

The obvious companion to this book, right off the top of my head, is "The Adventures of Sparrowboy", by Brian Pinkney. In fact, if Mr. Pinkney weren't such an original author in his own right, I'd be mighty suspicious regarding all the similarities between these two books. "Sparrowboy" follows an unassuming paperboy who acquires the power of flight. "The Paperboy" follows an unassuming paperboy who at the end of the book dreams of flight. Both are African-American young men who live in suburban neighborhoods. If you're more interested in doing a full-on paperboy storytime, also consider Don Brown's, "Kid Blink Beats the World". That's a kind of paperboy heroism the likes of which we'll probably never seen again. "Sparrowboy" and "Kid Blink" would be obvious pairings, but the tone of "The Paperboy" has far more in common with Jane Yolen's well-regarded, "Owl Moon". Both books revel in the feeling children have when they are out in the mysterious night and no one else is awake. If you're thinking about having a storytime that considers the natural mysteries that come when the sun is gone, these two are obvious companions. Read alone, however, "The Paperboy" will still extend its quiet bravery to the children that read it. Even if they've never seen a paperboy before, they'll understand how great it can sometimes be to have a job of one's very own

Dav, Pilkey a great painting in the paperboy. there were very nice pictures. since the story was written by a few sentence every page, it really gave children more space to image on the story. alhough it's a simple story, it taught our children the most. in the story, Dav descripted what did a paperboy do in his job. and how hard that his work was. as a paperboy, he had to get up early in the morning and delievered his newpaper before anyone got up. eventhough it was hard for him to get up in the morning, he had a very good friend (his dog) would do it with him every morning. in fact, Dav had taught our children that FRIENDSHIP would not only be limit just with human, it could also be with our animals, too. at the same time, he did teach our children to love animals because they could be their friend. also, Dav had taught our children what RESPONSIBILITIES are. to be responable to his/her own responsibilites. in the story, the paperboy would finish his work before he went back to sleep. therefore, when our children grow up, they would know to take care of their responsibilities and not avoid them. it's a good book to teach children about responsibilities.

The Paperboy was written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey. This was a fun-to-read, lighthearted book that relayed a very vivid lesson of maturity and hard work. In the story, a boy and his dog get up early every morning and deliver papers. The paperboy was a very responsible young man who loved his job. The bright and happy illustrations played a key role in letting the reader know how happy the boy and his dog were. In this story, the author uses various forms of symbolism to portray the paperboy as being a very mature and hard-working young man. One of the first very obvious symbolic representations was the young boy's receding hairline. While this doesn't necessarily mean he is mature, it is a trait displayed by men who are generally much older, wiser, and more mature. In many foreign countries, older men, who usually have little or no hair, are more respected and thought to be wise and knowledgeable. I think the author was probably using this common knowledge to help relay his message of maturity. Another key symbolic representation is the way the boy cares for the dog as his own child. He takes him everywhere, feeds him, and watches over him. These are all characteristics of a mature adult who has accepted the responsibility of being a parent. Lastly, the fact that the boy leaves his warm bed very early on a cold Saturday morning while everyone else is still asleep, speaks wonders of his dedication and level of maturity. In the book, the paperboy never hesitates when his alarm goes off. He knows he has a job to do, and he does it. Even the boy's dog, who he has cared for and taught behavioral patterns, is eager to start the early day. In this book, the paperboy was clearly a responsible and dedicated young man. The various forms of symbolism that the author used were a very effective means of relaying this message.

In the quiet of the early morning a paperboy and his dog headout on their daily route, peacefully slipping back into bed just asthe rest of the world awakens. In this Caldecott Honor winning picture book Dav Pilkey perfectly portrays the daily excursion of a young boy and his dog during the predawn hours as they deliver the Morning Star Gazette to each neighborhood home. Pilkey masters the art of creating atmosphere within this original mood piece. He uses descriptive language, such as "the mornings of the paperboy are still dark and they are always cold even in the summer," to capture the reader's interest and bring him or her into the life of the paperboy. His acrylic and India ink illustrations add to the mood and dreamy quality of the story. He uses cool colors, hues of blue and green, during the early morning hours and slowly adds warmer tones to illustrate the rising sun and the coming of a new day. Oblique lines and curved shapes distinguish the rolling hills and clouds from the houses down below on the tranquil street. Pilkey combines both words and pictures to describe not only the paperboy's actions, but his thoughts and feelings as well. Children ages three to six will enjoy reading this well crafted story that depicts a daily event in a new and shining light.

As a former paper-"person", this book was a wonderful step back in time. Wonderful illustrations, and simple but profound language. My 3 and 6 year olds love it!

Dav Pilkey's The Paperboy offers a glimpse of a young boy's first important job, giving children a feel for the responsibility involved as well as a bit of the independence this employment allows the little boy. Anyone who performed this duty as a child will enjoy this story. It is a reverent account of a child's first taste of real life.

Just wanted to add that we have this on video (The Scholastic video that pretty much brings the pictures to life) and the final scene of the boy and dog flying away to the moon (in a dream) makes me cry everytime!!! Just so freaking sweet. I'm tearing up thinking about it.

A really basic story, but also very sweet and I always enjoy reading about the boy and his doggy out on their morning delivery.Very peaceful scenario.

Pilkey, Dav. The Paperboy. New York: Orchard Books, 1996. Nikolajeva, Maria. "Exit Children's Literature?" The Lion and The Unicorn 22 (1998): 221-236.

Every morning, a young boy, who is the neighborhood paperboy, and his dog, go out on their route and deliver the papers to the sleeping neighbors. They enjoy their job and the peacefulness of being the only ones awake and out in the early morning. The paperboy experiences feelings of responsibility and accomplishment throughout the story. Most of the illustrations in The Paperboy are dark because the majority of the story takes place at dawn. This gives readers the feeling that they are part of the boy's early morning journey from house to house. The pictures do an excellent job of portraying the events of the story. The article "Exit Children's Literature" by Maria Nikolajeva focuses on some common prejudices about children's literature. According to an author, Perry Nodelman, some of these characteristics that make a book "children's literature" are that the book is simple but not necessarily simplistic, action-oriented rather than character-oriented, presented from the viewpoint of innocence, optimistic with a happy ending, didactic, and repetitious in diction and structure. Nikolajeva has different beliefs of what makes a book "children's literature." She gives examples of children's authors such as Robert Cormier, Patricia MacLachlan, and Margaret Mahy, whose books do not fit Nodelman's "definition" of children's literature, but in reality they are children's literature. I feel that The Paperboy does fit the definition of children's literature and relates to Maria Nikolajeva's article in that it fits Nodelman's definition. First, it is simple because it has a single, clear plot, a limited number of characters that are easy to remember (the paperboy, his dog, and his family), and flat characters. In The Paperboy, the boy and his dog do everything together, even sleep. Another characteristic of the story is that it is presented from the viewpoint of innocence. The characters in the story are good, and there are no conflicts or problems. Finally, the characteristic that children's literature is optimistic and has a happy ending applies to The Paperboy. The boy is clearly content throughout the story and, in the end, he and his dog are happy to have finished their job. I agree that many children's books can be classified as children's literature if they fit the "definition", but I also agree with Nikolajeva who believes that books don't necessarily have to fit the definition in order to be children's literature. I think the "definition" can be used for classifying books as children's literature, but I think the definition needs to go further because there are more characteristics of children's literature than those included in the definition. Each book should be looked at individually because they are different and have some of their own characteristics that make them appropriate for children.

Dav Pilkey must have been a paperboy. I was, and this captures the feel of being a boy wide awake while the world is still sleeping. I never tired of reading it. It's a perfect bedtime story. How can you lose with a story that has the character falling asleep at the end?