Product Description

THERE IS NO better way to introduce children to classical music than with Prokofiev’s musical fairy tale of the little boy (played by all the strings of the orchestra) who, with the help of a bird (played by the flute), outsmarted the big, bad wolf (played by the French horns). And now with this book and CD package, children can look and listen all at the same time. A new retelling by Janet Schulman follows the basic story, but with a kinder ending for both the big bad wolf and the argumentative duck. Peter Malone’s paintings have the luminous quality of old Russian masters. The CD, with music performed by the Cincinnati Pops and word-for-word narration by Peter A. Thomas, was made exclusively for this book and CD package.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4871 in Books
• Published on: 2004-09-14
• Released on: 2004-09-14
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 40 pages

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 3–This musical fantasy about a disobedient boy who leaves the safety of the garden for the unknown world of the meadow, cleverly conquering the danger he encounters, has been a childhood favorite since 1936. An opening page introduces the characters, naming and depicting the instrument associated with each one. Prokofiev purists, however, will have issues with this retelling. The text is much longer, much of it hammering home the obvious (that the wolf is dangerous) or providing unnecessary background (the content of grandfather's dream). This extraneous verbiage leaves less room for the music to spin the story. It is the ending, though, that will prove most troubling to longtime fans. This wolf is a pathetic captive, begging to go home, feeling guilty about his deed; the hunters are nervous Nellies; grandfather has changed his tune from paternal skepticism to pride; and… yes, the duck is coughed out as the wolf is returned to the forest. The impact of the drama is considerably lessened. Malone's illustrations are well matched to the story, evoking a somewhat surreal and sometimes humorous world with a Russian flavor. A serviceable CD, recorded by the Cincinnati Pops and narrated by Peter Thomas, is included. Erna Voigt's faithful rendition (Godine, 1979; o.p.) set a standard for this story that is hard to beat.–Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
PreS-Gr. 4. A CD featuring the Cincinnati Pops' rendition of Prokofiev's music and narration by Peter Thomas accompanies this new version of Peter's story, which Malone handsomely illustrates in soft-edged paintings. Feathery brush strokes and golden hues lend a comforting, nostalgic feel to the story, while bold close-up views of the agile, sharp-toothed wolf will thrill children. Libraries may already have other versions on the shelf (books by Loriot [1986] and Vladimir Vagin [2000] are particularly noteworthy), but Schulman's retelling and the accompanying recording make an appealing package. The expertly produced images and music will easily draw children into this classic, and its sly introduction to the sounds of the symphony.^B Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

From the Inside Flap
THERE IS NO better way to introduce children to classical music than with Prokofiev's musical fairy tale of the little boy (played by all the strings of the orchestra) who, with the help of a bird (played by the flute), outsmarted the big, bad wolf (played by the French horns). And now with this book and CD package, children can look and listen all at the same time. A new retelling by Janet Schulman follows the basic story, but with a kinder ending for both the big bad wolf and the argumentative duck. Peter Malone's paintings have the luminous quality of old Russian masters. The CD, with music performed by the Cincinnati Pops and word-for-word narration by Peter A. Thomas, was made exclusively for this book and CD package.

Customer Reviews

Excellent Production
Excellent production both for children and adults.
The book by itself is excellent, the music alone is excellent, and the combination is a winner.
Without book or music, my 3 year old grandson can recite the whole book and also imitate the musical instruments during his recitation

Peter and the Wolf
We recently were able to see the play version at a local children's theater and my daughter became hooked on the music and story line. After weeks of downloading the music on line, we finally bought her this book, and I'm so glad we did! The music is beautiful, and she is able to identify all the characters by the music playing and identify the instruments. We like the gentler story line, as our 4 year old frightens easily. This is a great buy!

love it
my daughter just loves this book, I think the music could be a little shorter in length between pages, but she doesn't seem to mind.