Sody Sallyratus - Hardcover

PreSchool-Grade 3. In a return to the traditional after a recent incarnation as a Jack tale in Joanne Compton's retelling (Holiday, 1995), this hardy perennial of the storytellers' repertoire has its singsong back. The family?old man, old woman, little girl, little boy and the squirrel?found in Richard Chase's Grandfather Tales (Houghton, 1973)?is intact, as is the ditty, "Sody, sody, sody sallyratus." The gist of the story is that the old woman can't make biscuits because she's out of sody sallyratus (baking soda), and one by one, each character goes to fetch it and is swallowed by a bear. When even the old woman fails to return, the squirrel sets off, tricks the bear, who disgorges the family and they all return home for breakfast. Sloat deals more gently with the bear than did tellers of old. The appeal of the story is its wonderful repetition and rhythm that can lure even the shyest listener into chanting along. The folksy, autumnal drawings create a mountainside settlement filled with cheerful rawboned people, curiously irritable animals, and whimsical flora. Text is set off by twig-and-leaf frames. The last page contains a biscuit recipe and a note about the many uses of baking soda. The simplicity and repetition of the story make it good for young groups. Its driving inevitability makes it the sort of tale that draws novice tellers; its continuing appeal is affirmed by the two recent picture book treatments?and the success of both approaches affirms the elasticity of the oral tradition.?Sally Margolis, formerly at Deerfield Public Library, IL
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In this tall tale, members of an Appalachian family try to obtain some sody sallyratus, "which is what they used to call bakin' soda," so they can make biscuits. One by one, a boy, girl, old man and old woman tramp over hill and dale to the general store; each stops to nibble berries and gets eaten by a hungry bear. The sole remaining family member, a pet squirrel, must outmaneuver the bear and rescue the foursome. (It's a happy ending for all-the bear runs off after spitting out the folks.) Sloat (The Thing That Bothered Farmer Brown) affects a hillbilly twang in her lively narration; her version is truer to the original (in Richard Chase's 1948 Grandfather Tales) than the spirited retelling offered by Joanne and Kenn Compton in their 1995 Sody Sallyratus. Sloat's version features detail-rich illustrations that fill every inch of space. The artist sets the mood with a cornucopia of autumnal colors against parchment-tone backdrops, then frames the scenery with borders of lashed-together saplings. On the closing page, there's even a biscuit recipe-and though it takes a while to stir the batter "till the dough follows the fork 'round the bowl," the results are as toothsome as the tale. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.