'The Sunflower Sword'

[May 18, 2011]  ^"The Sunflower Sword," by Mark Sperring and Miriam Latmer, Lerner Publishing Group, 2010, preschool to second grade, 25 pages, illustrated

Review by
Louella Moreland

Mark Sperring and Miriam Latmer have created an adorable, endearing adventure picture book in "The Sunflower Sword." They introduce us to a cute little boy dressed as a knight with a colander on his head for a helmet. What he does not have is a sword to fight with like the real knights.

His mother, being a wise and understanding parent, says he cannot have one. Instead she gives him a sunflower, agreeing that it would probably not be any good for fighting dragons. But the little boy does like the way it "whooshes" and "swooshes." He climbs up Dragon Hill, where he plays all day, slaying imaginary dragons until real fire and flames announce the arrival of a real dragon.

Of course, the story has a happy ending, with the little boy and the dragon becoming friends and thus changing his world.

So what makes this picture book stand out among the other books about fierce dragons and valiant knights? Could it be the illustrations?

Perhaps it is the feeling of fun that the reader experiences as one watches the little boy's real world and imaginary one come together. Perhaps it is the explosions of color that drench the two-page scenes. I especially like the depiction of a huge field of sunflowers with the little boy riding his dragon overhead. Perhaps it is the silliness of trying to fight dragons with a sunflower, or the knowing smile on the face of the mother when everyone learns to live peacefully.

Could its success be in the text? Carefully placed words of various sizes and shapes invite the reader to swoop and sway or turn to the next page, where one knows a delightful surprise may be revealed. While the plot may be quite an obvious one to adults, young readers will thrill in the adventure of finding the boy's dreams turn into real dragons. Of course, as with all good stories, Sperring has chosen words with precision to invoke feelings from excitement to warmth, while using vocabulary small children can easily comprehend.

With the library's Summer Reading Program theme this year, "A Midsummer Knight's READ," one may notice quite a few more books about knights, dragons and royalty. While this is a popular offering at any time, and one might easily wonder why to read or buy another book of this type, "The Sunflower Sword" goes beyond a childish adventure. The message speaks to the heart about how just one person can change the course of history. Isn't that a wonderful reason to share it with a young reader who just might grow up to believe he or she could do the same thing?

For this or other books about fantasy, come visit the Lincoln Public Library, 725 Pekin St. We will help you look for a great book to begin your summer reading!

[Text copied from file received from Louella Moreland, Lincoln Public Library District]

(Ms. Lou's blog: lincolnpubliclibraryupdates.blogspot.com)