Product Description

Carolinda Clatter is born noisy in a place where, legend says, loud noise will wake a sleeping giant and bring destruction. Her tale, and that of an old giant hopelessly on love with the icy moon, are told in this lovely new picture book by the 2004 Caldecott Medal winner. It's an energetic and touching story about a spirited child, the power of self-expression, and the mysterious ability of music to transform and soothe us, set out in rich, ebullient pictures.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #703688 in Books
• Published on: 2005-09-01
• Format: Illustrated
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 40 pages

From School Library Journal
Grade 2-4–The last giant on Earth has fallen hopelessly in love with the moon. Despite his desperate entreaties, which last for 5000 years, the moon ignores him. In despair, he lies down and weeps for another 10,000 years. Hugene eventually falls asleep and is gradually transformed into a grassy mountain. One hundred thousand years later, people build a town on him, but they live in total silence so as not to wake him. When Carolinda Clatter is born, however, she makes noise of every kind, despite everyone's warnings. But the bigger she grew, the louder she got. The giant awakens, and she is sent to put him back to sleep. Carolinda convinces Hugene that he is now a mountain and cannot dance to her songs. She also convinces him that he is loved by the people living on him as well as by the moon. The now-contented giant falls back to sleep, never to wake again, and the townspeople are free to be as noisy as they like. Gerstein's expert artwork conveys both the melancholy aspect of the lovesick giant as well as the peaceful dreamlike state he eventually attains. The book is thoughtfully designed, with small panels showing the passage of time, and full spreads highlighting momentous events. The plot, however, is problematic, as Carolinda's claims that the giant is now loved conflicts with the fact that the townspeople exist in fearful silence, and the moon remains oblivious to Hugene except in his dreams. This is a lovely but flawed endeavor.–Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From AudioFile
What happens when the last giant on earth is unrequited for thousands of years in his quest to marry the moon? The townspeople of Pupickton see the legendary giant reflected in a nearby landform and believe they must be as quiet as can be, lest the giant be disturbed. Along comes Carolinda Clatter--the very personification of NOISE. Sound is the focus of this recording. Whispers of townspeople, banging pots, moaning caves, throaty grumblings, soothing lullabies, and joyous song abound. Mordicai Gerstein's narration floats above this backdrop. He speeds and slows to highlight moments of emotion. One senses that he's having as much fun crafting this recording as he had creating the original story and illustrations. A.R. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

From Booklist
*Starred Review* PreS-Gr. 2. In his first picture book since the 2003 Caldecott Medal winner The Man Who Walked between the Towers, Gerstein offers a winning tall tale about "a lonely giant who fell in love with the moon." In full-spread and panel illustrations, Gerstein shows the infatuated giant singing beneath a coolly unimpressed moon. Finally, the mournful giant lies down, and for thousands of years he sleeps and weeps, grass and trees covering his body, until a town, Pupickton (a play on the Yiddish word for bellybutton), forms over his stomach. Afraid of waking the giant beneath, the townspeople live in near silence. Then little Carolinda Clatter is born and shatters the town's hush: "I can't help it . . . I love noise!" Eventually, she rouses the giant, and after tense negotiations, she helps him reconcile his affections for the moon. Thereafter, the town lives noisily and freely, singing its giant to sleep every evening with lullabies. The story may be a bit too long to hold restless children, but Gerstein tells his whimsical tale with direct humor, and his lovely paint-and-ink illustrations extend the comedy in scenes of the dancing giant and bucolic Pupickton, a silhouette of the snoring giant's open mouth on the town's horizon. Most of all, children will cheer for wild-haired, exuberant Carolinda, who defies adult rules and heals the giant's heart with joyful noise. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved