Reviews
Brain Pickings' Top 13 Children's, Illustrated, and Picture Books of 2013 "Crisply satirical and a little subversive, Twain's short, acerbic sendup slyly exhorts little girls to take a calculating approach to manipulating friends, brothers and elders. [...] An elegant curiosity for admirers of Twain, Radunsky or both. " -- Kirkus Review "Radunsky's ink flourishes and adorable, lumpy figures steal the stage." -- Publishers Weekly "Twain did not squat down to be heard and understood by children, but asked them to stand on their tiptoes--to absorb the kind of language and humor suitable for adults." -- New York Review of Books "While frolicsome in tone and full of wink, the story--like the most timeless of children's books--is colored with subtle hues of grown-up philosophy on the human condition, exploring all the deft ways in which we creatively rationalize our wrongdoing and reconcile the good and evil we each embody." -- Brain Pickings "it is sharp, a pointed set of admonitions urging girls to think for themselves, which is a message as essential today as it was a century-and-a-half ago." -- The Los Angeles Times "a sharp, charming story suitable for smart girls (and grown ups!) everywhere, and Radunsky's illustrations bring it to scribbled, red-cheeked life. It may just be the best picture book we've ever read." -- Flavorwire "...playful and mischievous and just the right amount of tongue in cheek. Best of all, it doesn't talk down to children and in the reading leads to grown-up conversation. I bought three copies: one to share with my newly-minted 9-year-old and two to give to my college-age nieces, my first daughters, who I know will totally 'get' the book."--Anissa V. Rivera, Pasadena Star News "This book is funny, because you should never do that, like making faces at old people; they probably won't make faces at you. This is not good advice at all. They are funny and silly pictures. One shows a little girl sticking out out her tongue at an old person and the old person sticking out her tongue at the little girl. It looks like the illustrator has scribbled on the pages with pen." --Reviewed by Rachel (age 7), San Francisco Kids Book Review, Brain Pickings' Top 13 Children's, Illustrated, and Picture Books of 2013 "Crisply satirical and a little subversive, Twain's short, acerbic sendup slyly exhorts little girls to take a calculating approach to manipulating friends, brothers and elders. [...] An elegant curiosity for admirers of Twain, Radunsky or both. " -- Kirkus Review "Radunsky's ink flourishes and adorable, lumpy figures steal the stage." -- Publishers Weekly, Brain Pickings' Top 13 Children's, Illustrated, and Picture Books of 2013 "Crisply satirical and a little subversive, Twain's short, acerbic sendup slyly exhorts little girls to take a calculating approach to manipulating friends, brothers and elders. [...] An elegant curiosity for admirers of Twain, Radunsky or both. " -- Kirkus Review "Radunsky's ink flourishes and adorable, lumpy figures steal the stage." -- Publishers Weekly "Twain did not squat down to be heard and understood by children, but asked them to stand on their tiptoes--to absorb the kind of language and humor suitable for adults." - New York Review of Books "While frolicsome in tone and full of wink, the story -- like the most timeless of children's books -- is colored with subtle hues of grown-up philosophy on the human condition, exploring all the deft ways in which we creatively rationalize our wrongdoing and reconcile the good and evil we each embody." - Brain Pickings "it is sharp, a pointed set of admonitions urging girls to think for themselves, which is a message as essential today as it was a century-and-a-half ago." - The Los Angeles Times "a sharp, charming story suitable for smart girls (and grown ups!) everywhere, and Radunsky's illustrations bring it to scribbled, red-cheeked life. It may just be the best picture book we've ever read." - Flavorwire, Brain Pickings' Top 13 Children's, Illustrated, and Picture Books of 2013 "Crisply satirical and a little subversive, Twain's short, acerbic sendup slyly exhorts little girls to take a calculating approach to manipulating friends, brothers and elders. [...] An elegant curiosity for admirers of Twain, Radunsky or both." -- Kirkus Review "Radunsky's ink flourishes and adorable, lumpy figures steal the stage." -- Publishers Weekly "Twain did not squat down to be heard and understood by children, but asked them to stand on their tiptoes--to absorb the kind of language and humor suitable for adults." - New York Review of Books "While frolicsome in tone and full of wink, the story -- like the most timeless of children's books -- is colored with subtle hues of grown-up philosophy on the human condition, exploring all the deft ways in which we creatively rationalize our wrongdoing and reconcile the good and evil we each embody." - Brain Pickings "it is sharp, a pointed set of admonitions urging girls to think for themselves, which is a message as essential today as it was a century-and-a-half ago." - The Los Angeles Times "a sharp, charming story suitable for smart girls (and grown ups!) everywhere, and Radunsky's illustrations bring it to scribbled, red-cheeked life. It may just be the best picture book we've ever read." - Flavorwire, "Crisply satirical and a little subversive, Twain's short, acerbic sendup slyly exhorts little girls to take a calculating approach to manipulating friends, brothers and elders. [...] An elegant curiosity for admirers of Twain, Radunsky or both. " -- Kirkus Review "Radunsky's ink flourishes and adorable, lumpy figures steal the stage." -- Publishers Weekly, Brain Pickings' Top 13 Children's, Illustrated, and Picture Books of 2013 "Crisply satirical and a little subversive, Twain's short, acerbic sendup slyly exhorts little girls to take a calculating approach to manipulating friends, brothers and elders. [...] An elegant curiosity for admirers of Twain, Radunsky or both." -- Kirkus Review "Radunsky's ink flourishes and adorable, lumpy figures steal the stage." -- Publishers Weekly "Twain did not squat down to be heard and understood by children, but asked them to stand on their tiptoes--to absorb the kind of language and humor suitable for adults." - New York Review of Books "While frolicsome in tone and full of wink, the story -- like the most timeless of children's books -- is colored with subtle hues of grown-up philosophy on the human condition, exploring all the deft ways in which we creatively rationalize our wrongdoing and reconcile the good and evil we each embody." - Brain Pickings "it is sharp, a pointed set of admonitions urging girls to think for themselves, which is a message as essential today as it was a century-and-a-half ago." - The Los Angeles Times "a sharp, charming story suitable for smart girls (and grown ups!) everywhere, and Radunsky's illustrations bring it to scribbled, red-cheeked life. It may just be the best picture book we've ever read." - Flavorwire, Brain Pickings' Top 13 Children's, Illustrated, and Picture Books of 2013 "Crisply satirical and a little subversive, Twain's short, acerbic sendup slyly exhorts little girls to take a calculating approach to manipulating friends, brothers and elders. [...] An elegant curiosity for admirers of Twain, Radunsky or both. " -- Kirkus Review "Radunsky's ink flourishes and adorable, lumpy figures steal the stage." -- Publishers Weekly "Twain did not squat down to be heard and understood by children, but asked them to stand on their tiptoes--to absorb the kind of language and humor suitable for adults." - New York Review of Books "While frolicsome in tone and full of wink, the story -- like the most timeless of children's books -- is colored with subtle hues of grown-up philosophy on the human condition, exploring all the deft ways in which we creatively rationalize our wrongdoing and reconcile the good and evil we each embody." - Brain Pickings "it is sharp, a pointed set of admonitions urging girls to think for themselves, which is a message as essential today as it was a century-and-a-half ago." - The Los Angeles Times "a sharp, charming story suitable for smart girls (and grown ups!) everywhere, and Radunsky's illustrations bring it to scribbled, red-cheeked life. It may just be the best picture book we've ever read." - Flavorwire
Synopsis
Brilliantly illustrated, this witty, charming story is perfect for clever girls, adults and the mischievous boys in their midst. You should ever bear in mind that it is to your kind parents that you are indebted for your food, and for the privilege of staying home from school when you let on that you are sick. Therefore you ought to respect their little prejudices, and humor their little whims, and put up with their little foibles until they get to crowding you too much. When Mark Twain wrote the sparky short story "Advice to Little Girls" in 1865, he probably didn't mean for it to be shown to them. Or maybe he did, since we all know Twain was a rascal. Now, author and illustrator Vladimir Radunsky has created a picture book based on Twain's text that adds all the right outlandish touches. Born on November 30, 1835, in Florida, Missouri, Samuel L. Clemens wrote under the pen name Mark Twain . He wrote two major classics of American literature, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn . He was also a riverboat pilot, journalist, lecturer, entrepreneur, and inventor. Whether or not it was Mark Twain's actual intention for little girls to read this humorous short story, it's clear that he did not talk down to children, but rather expected them to stretch themselves in order to grasp sophisticated, adult meaning. Vladimir Radunsky has illustrated many books to great acclaim. Recently, Radunsky has been moving farther and farther away from the traditional picture book and into other more innovative forms. The most recent example is a work published by HarperCollins of hip-hop poetry for children, where the graffiti art has migrated from the walls into a printed book. Radunsky has published more than thirty books for children, mostly in the United States. Many of them were translated and published in France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, and Japan., You should ever bear in mind that it is to your kind parents that you are indebted for your food, and for the privilege of staying home from school when you let on that you are sick. Therefore you ought to respect their little prejudices, and humor their little whims, and put up with their little foibles until they get to crowding you too much. When Mark Twain wrote the sparky short story "Advice to Little Girls" in 1865, he probably didn't mean for it to be shown to them. Or maybe he did, since we all know Twain was a rascal. Now, author and illustrator Vladimir Radunsky has created a picture book based on Twain's text that adds all the right outlandish touches. Born on November 30, 1835, in Florida, Missouri, Samuel L. Clemens wrote under the pen name Mark Twain . He wrote two major classics of American literature, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn . He was also a riverboat pilot, journalist, lecturer, entrepreneur, and inventor. Whether or not it was Mark Twain's actual intention for little girls to read this humorous short story, it's clear that he did not talk down to children, but rather expected them to stretch themselves in order to grasp sophisticated, adult meaning. Vladimir Radunsky has illustrated many books to great acclaim. Recently, Radunsky has been moving farther and farther away from the traditional picture book and into other more innovative forms. The most recent example is a work published by HarperCollins of hip-hop poetry for children, where the graffiti art has migrated from the walls into a printed book. Radunsky has published more than thirty books for children, mostly in the United States. Many of them were translated and published in France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, and Japan., Brilliantly illustrated, this witty, charming story is perfect for clever girls, adults and the mischievous boys in their midst.
