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    The Amazing Bone: (Caldecott Honor Book)
    The Amazing Bone: (Caldecott Honor Book)
    The Amazing Bone: (Caldecott Honor Book)
    Audiobook14 minutes

    The Amazing Bone: (Caldecott Honor Book)

    Written by William Steig

    Narrated by Stanley Tucci

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    About this audiobook

    The Amazing Bone is a 1976 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year, a 1977 Caldecott Honor Book, and a 1977 Boston Globe - Horn Book Awards Honor Book for Picture Books.

    William Steig, incomparable master of the contemporary picture book, has never been better than in The Amazing Bone.

    It's a bright and beautiful spring day, and Pearl, a pig, is dawdling on her way home from school. Most unexpectedly, she strikes up an acquaintance with a small bone. "You talk?" says Pearl. "In any language," says the bone. "And I can imitate any sound there is." (Its former owner was a witch.) Pearl and the bone immediately take a liking to each other, and before you know it she is on her way home with the bone in her purse, left open so they can continue their conversation. Won't her parents be surprised when she introduces her talking bone!

    But before that happy moment comes, the resourceful bone must deal with a band of highway robbers in Halloween masks and, worse, a fox who decides that Pearl will be his main course at dinner that night. And deal it does, with gambits droll and thrilling.

    Made into a short animated film voiced by John Lithgow, available on streaming and home video.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Audio
    Release dateOct 20, 2012
    ISBN9781427232588
    Author

    William Steig

    William Steig (1907-2003) was a cartoonist, illustrator and author of award-winning books for children, including Shrek!, on which the DreamWorks movies are based. Steig was born in New York City. Every member of his family was involved in the arts, and so it was no surprise when he decided to become an artist. He attended City College and the National Academy of Design. In 1930, Steig’s work began appearing in The New Yorker, where his drawings have been a popular fixture ever since. He published his first children's book, Roland the Minstrel Pig, in 1968. In 1970, Steig received the Caldecott Medal for Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. His books for children also include Dominic; The Real Thief; The Amazing Bone, a Caldecott Honor Book; Amos & Boris, a National Book Award finalist; and Abel's Island and Doctor De Soto, both Newbery Honor Books. Steig's books have also received the Christopher Award, the Irma Simonton Black Award, the William Allen White Children's Book Award, and the American Book Award. His European awards include the Premio di Letteratura per l'infanzia (Italy), the Silver Pencil Award (the Netherlands), and the Prix de la Fondation de France. On the basis of his entire body of work, Steig was selected as the 1982 U.S. candidate for the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for Illustration and subsequently as the 1988 U.S. candidate for Writing. Steig also published thirteen collections of drawings for adults, beginning with About People in 1939, and including The Lonely Ones, Male/Female, The Agony in the Kindergarten, and Our Miserable Life. He died in Boston at the age of 95.

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    Reviews for The Amazing Bone

    4/5

    119 ratings13 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It is done in such a masterful way that even though it is a bit long, it sails by. Pearl is a young pig still in school. On a bight sunny day, she takes a picnic and finds a bone that once fell out of a witch’s basket. This amazing bone could talk. It was very helpful in scaring away the robbers that attacked with knives and guns. But the Fox was smart. He saw the bone and how amazing it was. He wanted it for himself and Pearl for dinner. Literally! A pignapping happens, but the bone still saves the day. This book is heavily banned. The reasons range from witchcraft and the occult to violence and kidnapping. I get why parents complain, this book is a bit more macabre wrapped in pretty paper than stories are now. But the story is lovely. It’s a folk tale that could be told again and again and again and kids would be on the edge of their seat every single time.
    • 2/5
      Although the story starts well, the plot becomes to violent and doesn’t seem to have a real ending. A girl pig wanders after school, finds a talking bone, gets into serious trouble, the bone saves her from a gruesome death, she brings the bone home, tell her parents then goes to bed with the bone. It makes no sense to me.
    • 3/5
      I think I'm too old & jaded to appreciate this. I believe this is the first time I've read this particular Steig, and I just don't get it. I mean, so what? Where's the heart, the resonance, the reread value? Pearl is a nice girl who has an adventure... ok then.
    • 5/5
      I love The Amazing Bone more than I can express! I've even read it to adult crowds and gotten a laugh. This book is a must-read!
    • 3/5
      This book is about a pig who finds a talking bone and it ends up being very special to her. The bone helps her get out of a bad situation when she is about to get eaten by a fox. Children could use their imagination by asking what would they do if the bone talked to them.
    • 4/5
      This book is a little iffy in terms of all of its content so it may be something that is slightly censored depending on the age group. It is the story of a happy little pig that finds a magic bone that is able to imitate any sound or language. The two become quick friends having lovely conversations. On their walk through the woods they come across a hungry fox that cannot be fooled by the talking bone and take the two back to his house and prepares to eat the Pearl the pig. Suddenly the bone realizes that he has another magic power... he is able to shrink the fox to the size of a mouse saving the life of Pearl. This book can be used to talk about the power of words and to never underestimate the abilities of others.
    • 4/5
      A lovely little book about a pig who finds and befriends a talking bone. On her way home, she is stopped by muggers who the bone scare away. Further in her journey, she is stopped by a fox who the bone fails at scaring away. The fox takes the pig and her bone to his house and locks her in a room while he prepares to cook her for dinner. Right before the fox cooks the little pig, the bone begins shouting random words. The more he speaks, the smaller the mouse gets until it is a small little mouse and scurries away. The pig and the bone head home to the pig's worried parents. The pig explains her story to her parents and shows them her talking bone. The bone becomes a part of the family and all is well in the end. I enjoyed this book however would suggest it for older children because of the larger vocabulary words. The only complaint I would have is the fact that the robbers pull out knives and put a gun to the pig's head. It seems a bit much for a children's book and something I wouldn't want being read to my children, especially at an early age.
    • 5/5
      The Amazing Bone is a story about a talking bone that helps a little pig names Pearl out of predicaments that could harm her. She escapes three robbers and a hungry fox with the talking bones help. In this story there are bigger words for children to look up, understand and use in their vocabulary.
    • 2/5
      Summary:The Amazing Bone is about a little girl pig, named Pearl who comes across a talking bone. The bone belonged to a witch who had lost him when he fell out of the witches basket. Pearl decides to take the bone home but on their way home she runs across trouble first with some robbers who the Bone scares and then Fox. Fox wants to eat Pearl for dinner and is not afraid of Bone. He takes them to his foxhole and there Bone saves Pearl from Fox by casting a spell on him that shrinks Fox to mouse size. Pearl takes Bone home to her parents who cannot believe what they hear when the Bone begins to speak. The family decided to keep Bone and he becomes part of the family.Personal Reaction: I personally did not really like this book. I did not stay interested in the book.Extension Ideas:1.Have the class break into groups and have them explain what the Plot was. Having each group present.2.Have each child create to sequence cards explain what happened in this story.
    • 4/5
      Pearl is just a normal pig walking around a forest when suddenly she hears a voice that sounds as if it is right next to her. To her surprise it was coming from a bone that was lying next to her right there on the ground. This bone and her were instant friend and he comes to the rescue in a terrible situation.
    • 2/5
      Although I likes the story, I did not like the robbery scene. My children did not like it either. I thought it was cruel and graphic.
    • 5/5
      I love Steig's tales, and my children have always enjoyed them as well. They get to use their imagination and there is a moral to the story, too. Delightful illustrations. Pearl has an amazing adventure one day on her way home, it all begins when she finds this unusual bone...
    • 5/5
      While Pearl dawdles after class she finds a talking bone, so taken with her new friend, Pearl is caught unawares by an aggressive fox and it will take all the bone's skill to get them free. Beautiful pen and paint from Steig staggered between the text. This is a simple story, with a shocking amount of realism for a picture book that is carefully designed in an acceptable form for child readers. Successful resolution. Recommended for any picture book collections for all readers.