The Runaway Tortilla [Hardcover]

Eric A. Kimmel (Author), Randy Cecil (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up

In Texas, Tia Lupe and Tio Jose make the best tortillas - so light that the cowboys say they just might jump right out of the griddle. One day, a tortilla does exactly that. Mocking her pursuers, the tortilla runs through the desert, encountering two horned toads, three donkeys, four jackrabbits, five rattlesnakes, and six buckaroos. She dodges them all, but is finally outwitted by Senor Coyote in this flavorful twist on the classic tale "The Gingerbread Man."

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 2-A story about a woman and a man and a piece of bread that comes to life and runs away. T'a Lupe and T'o Jos? own a taquer'a in Texas down on the Rio Grande. The secret to their success is their tortillas-so light that if they were any lighter, "Some day they-[might] up and run away!" To their surprise, this is just what happens. The foolish tortilla is so cocky she could almost strut, but since she's round, she can only roll. She rolls away from the couple, two horned toads, three donkeys, four jackrabbits, five rattlesnakes, and six buckaroos, singing all the while, "Run as fast as fast can be. You won't get a bite of me." She is finally tricked and eaten by Se-or Coyote, who takes advantage of her fatuous egotism. The primitive oil paintings feature a palette of sunset colors, a rotund T'a and T'o, and a lipsticked, scowling tortilla. The apt endpapers sport sacks of flour, rolling pins, salt shakers, oil, and skillets. Kimmel's saucy story joins a swarm of similar, albeit popular, retellings of traditional tales with a Southwestern setting.
Ruth Semrau, Upshur County Public Library, Gilmer, TX
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Winslow Pr; 1st edition (September 30, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 189081718X
• ISBN-13: 978-1890817183
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 8.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #884,083 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Eric A. Kimmel is well known for the tales he has retold from around the world. Some of his best-known titles are "Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins" (a Caldecott Honor book), "Gershon's Monster", "Anansi and the Talking Melon", and "The Runaway Tortilla". A former professor of children's literature, he lives in Portland, Oregon.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute variation, September 8, 2001

By 

"misslibrary" (Omaha, NE United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Runaway Tortilla (Hardcover)

This story is a cute variation of The Gingerbread Man with a Spanish twist. My students enjoy reading the story and comparing it to The Gingerbread Man. My only problem with this book is the use of the traditional name for a donkey. It makes it hard to share with children because they don't understand that that word has another meaning. I wish the author had just used "donkey". Cute illustrations too!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Runaway Tortilla- a favorite in my classroom!, November 22, 2006

By 

Vanessa Levin "www_pre-kpages_com" (Dallas TX USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Runaway Tortilla (Hardcover)

As a Pre-K teacher in Texas this story is a favorite in my classroom every year during our Gingerbread unit. We read different versions of the Gingerbread story and compare and contrast them. After reading The Runaway Tortilla we eat real tortillas, my students usually like those far more than Gingerbread :)

3.0 out of 5 stars swearing, October 6, 2010

By 

kbooks - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Runaway Tortilla (Hardcover)

This book could've been good - but for my purposes of supplying books to classrooms, it does not work because of the use of the word "jackasses". It's also much too long for young students.