Customer Reviews

The Scarecrow's Dance

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The moon was high over the fields while the lonesome scarecrow continued his solitary watch over the now mature corn. It was autumn and the gentle winds of the summer began to cool and whip through the fields, tearing at his shirt and blowing parts of it across the darkened field. He began to dance in the wind, flung this way and that. Even his straw leg whipped up and reached to the sky when a burst of cold wind hit him. Whish! Whish! He "left his place" in the field and ran down a corn row as a Prairie Dog watched in amazement.

"He jogged a row
And trotted back
Along the cornfield's
Dirt-piled track,

While high above
His painted Head,
The crazed and cawing
Black crows fled."

The scarecrow danced and swayed through the farm past the tractor, past the Holsteins, the barn and the two sleeping pigs. He skittered by the old horse drawn hay mower sidled against the barn and came into view of the farm house. He peered into the window and saw a little boy on his knees praying. "Please . . . " The scarecrow listened carefully and suddenly a single tear began to fall down his cheek. What did the little boy pray for that could make an old weathered scarecrow weep?

I was utterly impressed with the quality of this book. I loved the autumn theme and the message that everything and everyone has a special purpose in life, including the lowly scarecrow. The art work uses a darkened pallette, keeping with the fall equinox when the days become shorter and everything appears to be much darker in the countryside. The rural parent and child may be able to appreciate the country theme more as the scenery is familiar. I just loved this story of the lowly scarecrow, the heart and soul of the farm!

Length:: 2:59 Mins

Beautifully illustrated, a unique story, with some word choices I wouldn't have picked (for the younger kids it is recommended for). But still, a nice book.

Jane Yolen deserves praise for offering a distinctive view of the iconic scarecrow. Her picture book attempts to fuse magic and faith, silliness and somberness. The results are uneven; the poem's tone is often gloomy and foreboding; awkward words interrupt the rhythm of rhymed couplets. For example, Yolen chose "forlorn" and "singularity" to complete rhymes but children would more easily understand "sad" and "miracle".

He danced past tractor
In the field.
Sill waiting to
Bring in the yield.

Past cows who lay down
In the grass
And watced him
As he, silent, passed.

He danced by barn
As red as blood
And two pigs sleeping
In the mud.

The "red as blood" description bothered my sons (ages 6 and 5). They asked me if that meant someone was hurt.
While the poem suffers from jagged rhymes and tone, the illustrations are outstanding. Bagram Ibatoulline captures twilight's soft colors, the breezy look of an evening wind rushing through the corn fields and a soft, cheerful scarecrow.

In summary, The Scarecrow's Dance deserves three stars, crediting its unique storyline while the illustrations deserve no less than five stars. Together, the picture book earns four stars for a net score of four stars.

Scarecrow's Dance was refreshing to a certain extent because it shows an individual realizing they have an important duty to fulfill that is more important than dancing around.

For me, personally, this hit home. I've pretty much been responsible for other people most of my life. I can empathise with the scarecrow completely. So much about today's world is all about personal fulfillment. But personal fulfillment doesn't get my aged mother to her doctor's appointments -- someone has to step up and be responsible.

However, the Christian aspects were a disconcerting for me, personally. I think this book would be best appreciated in an actively religious home.

This would be good for a kid who is being asked to step up with more responsibilities -- for example, helping to take care of an elderly family member, babysit younger siblings, other work to help the family.

"The Scarecrow's Dance" is a picture book about a scarecrow who decides to leave his lonely perch one night. He romps, spins, and dances joyously through the cornfield, delighted to be free. Only when he sees the farmer's son praying for a good harvest does he realize what his absence from the farm will mean, and he heads back to his post with a sense of both duty and pride.

This is a very well-written and beautifully illustrated book. Jane Yolen's verse is, as always, lilting and flawlessly executed, and Ibatoulline's drawings are exquisite. But this is one of those picture books that is really much more for adults than for children. Tender grown-ups will tear up at the scarecrow's sacrifice as he chooses duty over personal freedom, but I have to imagine that most kids would miss the point of the story entirely. So, while I'd definitely recommend it, quite honestly I'm not sure for whom.

Jane Yolen has been the recipient of such awards as the Caldecott Medal, the Regina Medal, the Kerlan Award, the Keene State Award, the Boston Public Library's Literary Lights for Children Award, and the Anna V. Zarrow Award. She has written more than three hundred books for children. Her latest and greatest being The Scarecrow's Dance.

The Scarecrow's Dance is a wonderful book for the upcoming Halloween, Autumn Harvest and Thanksgiving time and is really a special book. The illustrations or should I say art by Bagram Ibatoulline are just sublime. The story takes place on a family farm during harvest and concerns the scarecrow watching over his fields of corn and how one magical night he comes alive and is able to dance. The story is written in flowing, rhyming, rhythmic verse such as "He danced past tractor/ In the field,/ Still waiting to/ Bring in the yield...."

I don't want to give away the plot or the lovely ending of this wonderful story, but suffice it to say that Jane Yolen has conjured up a great nostalgic book that brings home the tenets of faith, discovery and everyone's place in this world while Bagram Ibatoulline's incredible and artistic life-like, dusk to dawn illustrations add to the aforementioned effect immensely.

Truly a one of a kind book that would make a lovely gift for any child and would be cherished for a lifetime!

Happy Reading!

I wish I'd paid attention to the other reviews, which warned this was a religious title. Further, while Imbatoulline's art is undoubtedly well-done, it's sometimes off sync with the story. The story itself is written tersely (surprising from Yolen), in which awkward choices of words too long for children are too commonplace (I'm looking at you, "singularity").

I wouldn't have picked it up had I paid more attention to the religious tone of the title. Fortunately, the prose made it easy to put back down.

My preschooler has been a fan of Ms Yolen's since I read her the dinosaur books, i.e. "How do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?" etc. This was when she was a toddler and we have sort of 'grown' with Ms Yolen's books since then. I was very excited when I saw Ms Yolen's latest book "The Scarecrow's Dance" as I was looking for something to read to my daughter for the Halloween and Thanksgiving season.

"The Scarecrow's Dance" tells the story of a lone scarecrow amidst a field of corn. Told in the form of a rhyming poem (making it a delight to read and listen to), the scarecrow finds that he is able to move away from his post and walks around happily, reveling in his new-found freedom until he glimpses a young boy praying in his room before bedtime. In his prayer, the young boy prays for his farm's scarecrow,

"And bless tonight
Our old scarecrow
Who guards the fields
And each corn row."

Listening to the young boy's prayer, the scarecrow experiences an epiphany and realizes his true place.

The illustrations by artist Bagram Ibatoulline are simply gorgeous, awash in the colors of fall, and complement the equally riveting verse. This is a perfect book for reading aloud and a delightful picture book that young children and even older readers will find enchanting, especially during the fall season and Thanksgiving. Ms Yolen has once again proven herself to be a master storyteller, and we (my daughter and I) look forward to her next offering.

This book read like one beautiful poem. The artwork was superior. I really felt like I was on a farm in Iowa although I'm a city girl. This book can be an excellent self-esteem book. It's message that we all have a purpose "even a scarecrow" demonstrates how we all are good at something.

"The Scarecrow's Dance" by Jane Yolen was a great book. The scarecrow wanted to be free to get off his pole and dance. He happened upon the farm boy praying for thescarecrow to keep the corn field safe, and he realized how important his job is. He was happy to get back on his pole and do his job.

This is a beautifully illustrated book with great colors and font. The text is poetry and is quite good. Very enjoyable story. It was sweet without being sappy or cheesy. This book was a great find and my son will love it! I greatly recommend this title.