The Red Corduroy Shirt

Click Here For More Detail

Gr 3-4A book that is unsuccessful at relating its noble message. Readers are told that Jake, the narrator, is a Hungarian immigrant. Jerrys country of origin is never identified, but the illustrations and cultural allusions make one assume that he is from eastern Asia. The two boys become fast friends after walking home from school together, and when Jerry gives Jake the eponymous shirt practically off his back, Jakes parents refuse to allow him to accept it. This offends Jerrys father, but neither motivation is explained. The tale ends abruptly with Jakes parents mistaking a picture that Jerry drew as one of their sons and putting it in a place of honor, covering up a picture of a beloved and deceased grandmother. Children will not relate to the weakly developed and inconsistent characters. Jake cries when his father wont finish a bedtime story, and yet eloquently describes how shadows of the leaves flow over [the shirt] like film. The setting is unclear, but Jake has a picture of Queen Elizabeth on his bedroom wall. And the only hint as to the time period is a line about a Martin Luther King march. Adults may be able to contrive that the point is children as the link between cultures. All of these assumptions could facilitate classroom discussion, but reading this story for pleasure is not likely.Andrew Medlar, Chicago Public Library, IL Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Joseph Kertes is a Fitzhenry and Whiteside author.


Read More...

Post Tags : The, Red, Corduroy, Shirt, undefined

1. This page is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com
2. Amazon, the Amazon logo, Endless, and the Endless logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.
3. CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON SERVICES LLC. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED AS IS AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.