Peter Elwell’s Adios Oscar! A Butterfly Fable opens with the view of a house where we see in the upper level window is a flowerpot. The pot holds a blossom and on a leaf the reader can see a minute caterpillar. The caterpillar is Oscar.
One day Oscar was thrilled to meet Bob a butterfly. Bob from Detroit was on his way to Mexico.
Bob is a Monarch butterfly. Oscar admired Bob’s beautiful wings and was thrilled to learn that he, Oscar too, would have wings one day. As Bob vanished upon a transitory gust of wind he invited Oscar to look him up in Mexico if Oscar made the trip.
Oscar was a tad self-conscious when his caterpillar pals were not at all enthralled with the news that once he had his wings, Oscar planned to visit Mexico and find his friend Bob.
Edna, the bookworm encouraged Oscar to just overlook the hecklings.
Edna took Oscar into a library where Oscar saw numerous bookworms and masses of bugs, and books.
Laying the groundwork for his journey to Mexico; Edna aided Oscar by helping him study Spanish, and how to read a map. When he found books about caterpillars; Oscar even discovered that butterflies who look like Bob actually do fly to Mexico.
Presently it was time for Oscar to take the lengthy caterpillar nap he and Edna had read about during their studies. Edna taught him one last phrase in Spanish, Buenas Noches, whispering good night in Spanish Oscar fell asleep. He dreamed of distant mountains and all the new friends he would meet on his expedition from Cleveland, south to Mexico.
Oscar was very enthusiastic when he awoke and noticed his longed-for wings were indeed right there on his back. What disappointment! Oscar did have wings, but they were not beautiful Monarch wings,
He found his friends too had wings and were joyously flying around lightbulbs and eating a designer sweater. For the rest of his life Oscar felt unquestionably he would fly around lightbulbs and munch on socks and sweaters. He was certain he would never see Mexico.
One night when Oscar gloomily went to visit his old flowerpot Oscar found a note from Edna. With Edna’s encouragement, Oscar decided he should not let his vision just evaporate because he didn’t look or think precisely as he thought he would.
Osage County First Grade has always delighted in stories well told. As do many emergent readers these young learners love science and tales having a science theme.
Adios Oscar offers a charming, joy packed account of a determined caterpillar who does not let boundaries mean an end to his dream. Oscar WAS elated when he thought he would become a Monarch. Upon emerging from his cocoon Oscar did at first think his dreams could never be.
With reassurance from his friend Edna, a bookworm, Oscar resolves that while he is not a gorgeous butterfly; he CAN put his education learning Spanish and reading maps to good use and fly south anyway.
Osage County First Grade appreciates this pleasing chronicle regarding feelings of self-awareness, self-esteem, encouragement by family and friends as well as their own continuing to work toward realizing goals set by themselves. The chronicle presents an indispensable understanding to children without becoming monotonous or esoteric.
Adios Oscar is a tome frequently selected by our child of the day as the class listening to story at the end of day, and is often carried by little readers as their choice for free time, DEAR, and take home reading time.
Little Learners relish the chance for adding to their own Spanish language vocabulary, as presented in this child friendly work filled with enjoyable illustrations, child pleasing colors and Science!
Osage County Little Learners enjoy listening to and reading about caterpillars, and when possible, watching them as cocoons in the classroom and finally getting to see the moth or butterfly emerge and begin to move about in their container.
I too enjoy this uplifting, optimistic tale, am Happy to recommend Adios Oscar as a must have for gifting children Pre School to Primary Grades, for placing in the school library, on the classroom bookshelf, and in child’s own book box.
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Reviewed by Molly’s Reviews
molly martin
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Product Details and Shipping Information from Amazon
AUTHOR Peter Elwell lives in New York City.
Illustrator : Andrew T. Pelletier lives in Altamont, New York.
Children's picture book K - Primary
Read to 3-5 year olds
Read with 5-6 year olds
Read to siblings and younger grade students 7-8 olds
Grade Level: Preschool – Kindergarten – Primary Grades
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: The Blue Sky Press (April 15, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0545071593
ISBN-13: 978-0545071598
Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8.8 x 0.4 inches
Available as hard cover 10.95, and as audible
The only problem I have with the tale is that it is incorrect scientifically. And therefore, starts out the preschool child with the wrong information that they may tend to believe while ignoring science classes when they get to that age and then ignoring science later in life or going around with misconceived notions that they got from the powerful learning period from ages 2 to 6.
A monarch from Detroit might lay its eggs on a milkweed plant (that are being destroyed by herbicides as a weed) in Kentucky and then die. Those eggs would produce caterpillars and subsequent Monarch butterflies that would travel further south to Texas or Louisiana, etc. reaching Mexico three or four generations later. This could be written into the story.
Oscar was obviously a moth. Moths do not eat sweaters or socks. They lay eggs on these food sources for their caterpillars like Oscar. The caterpillars eat the dead skin from humans and while doing so, chew through the fibers of sweaters and socks, especially if they are wool.
I think the story about Oscar would be even better Peter Elwell got the science correct.
Ron