The Rumor
Creative Editions/Raincoast Books
Age 5-8
24 pages
written and illustrated by Monique Felix
Synopsis from Raincoast Books:
Have you heard the news? A wolf is coming! Word travels quickly through a peaceful village when a hungry beast is spotted in the hills. The threat compels animal friends to warn one another and, in doing so, turn hearsay into an increasingly inaccurate rumor. Uncertainty abounds, but by the time the villagers are safely gathered out of harm’s way, one thing is for sure — readers young and old will be charmed by The Rumor!
Kids have great imaginations but sometimes their imagination can get away from them, especially in the school yard. What starts off as an innocent remark gets stretched into something much bigger. The Rumor does a great job of illustrating this but without any hurt feelings (like what can come of an actual rumor).
As we read The Rumor I could see my son getting caught up in the friends’ exaggerated tale. The illustrations were humourous in how they depicted each exagerated trait of the dreaded wolf. Although the story did poke fun a little at the rumours about the wolf, the idea still hit home. We both loved the surprise ending that had us going full circle in this story. The Rumor is a nice way to introduce the issues around hearing, starting, and spreading rumors. I’m sure many kids have found themselves involved in a rumour but probably without realizing what they were doing or what affect it can have on other people. The Rumor does a great job addressing the topic without being threatening or preachy.
You can add The Rumor to your personal library by visiting your local book store or visiting Raincoast Books. Visit our Kid’s Books section for other great book recommendations. What are you reading with your kids?
I have to thank Crystal at Raincoast Books for my review copy.