Yettele's Feathers - Hardcover

Rothenberg, Joan

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786820810 ISBN 13: 9780786820818

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 1995

Synopsis

Yettele Babbelonski, a widow and a compulsive talker, quickly becomes the town gossip of her East Europe village, until a kind and knowing Rabbi creates a scheme to make her realize the error of her ways.

About this title

From School Library Journal:

Kindergarten-Grade 3?A felicitous adaptation of a cautionary tale told originally as a warning against leshon harah (slander/gossip). A widow without children, "Yettele had a lot of time for minding other people's business," and mind it she does! Not only does she spread rumors from one neighbor to another, but she always has the facts wrong and surmises the worst. Eventually, everyone in Ostrow is afraid to talk to her, so she goes to the Rabbi. He advises her on the course of action that convices her never to gossip again. Rothenberg tells the tale in language redolent with Old World rhythm and with a few transliterated Yiddish expression inserted for emphasis. Her Yettele is a memorable character on a par with Carol Chapman's The Tale of Meshka the Kvetch (Dutton, 1980). Gouache on bristol board illustrations depict the village and its inhabitants in bright, almost tropical, colors. Leaning houses form a patchwork against cerulean skies and green hills; they are not authentically drab, but charming. A welcome, tellable addition to folktale collections from a talented newcomer to the world of children's books.?Marcia Posner, Federation of New York and the Jewish Book Council, New York City
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist:

Ages 4^-8. Yettele Babbelonski loves to gossip. With a perfect view of the town and nothing to do all day, how can she help herself? When the neighbors complain about her tall tales, she shrugs them off. After all, she says, her stories are only words, and words are no more hurtful than feathers. It takes a wise rabbi with a clever ruse to change her mind. At the rabbi's request, Yettele cuts open a pillow and carries it across town. When the wind blows the feathers away, she discovers how hard it is to gather them back and repair the damage. Rothenberg's moral tale has a warm, comic quality. The gouache illustrations feature candylike tones of green, purple, and blue. Characters are drawn with broad, humorous strokes, and the town is a happy jumble of people, buildings, trees, and sky. The book comes to a fitting close as Yettele finds new pleasures in telling stories about her own life to the town children. Leone McDermott

About this edition

• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0786820810
• ISBN 13: 9780786820818
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 40