Matilda and Hans

by Yokococo, Yokococo (Illustrator)

Overview

A comical tale of naughty and nice with a surprising twist!

Matilda is a very good girl. She likes to read and water her flowers. Hans is very naughty. He makes too much noise and is always causing trouble! When Hans lets the animals out of the zoo, a reward is offered for his capture. Matilda tells the police where he will be, but when they catch Hans and take off his mask, they find something quite surprising!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763664343
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	05/14/2013
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.60(w) x 9.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Yokococo (Yoko Shima) is a Japanese author and illustrator. She studied English literature in Kyoto before teaching English. She moved to the U.K. to study illustration at the Cambridge School of Art and is now the creator of several children’s books.

Editorial Reviews

Boldly outlined, naïf-style illustrations are paired with mysterious mischief in this entry from Japanese artist Yokococo. Matilda is a sweet-faced gray cat who reads quietly at home, while the masked and whiskered Hans plays pranks at night. Are the two friends? Brother and sister? “One night Hans climbed the gates of the zoo... took the keys... and set all the animals free!” A giddy spread shows the results of Hans’s prank: a pair of flamingoes try on shoes at the shoe store, a kangaroo and her joey relax on a park bench, and a group of the zoo’s water creatures commune in the municipal fountain. Meanwhile, Matilda watches it all from her window, her huge, expressive eyes wide. Alert readers will notice that Matilda is only seen during the day, while Hans plays tricks at night; a ,000 reward poster convinces clever Matilda to turn in “Hans” so she can collect the prize. It’s a sly junior mystery with some sparkling moments, but those expecting Matilda might learn her lesson will be disappointed—she plans to go right on being naughty. Ages 3–6. (May)

Publishers Weekly

This quirky import combines minimal text, an odd twist and charmingly childlike pictures to create a brief (a)morality tale.
—Kirkus Reviews

Story and illustrations are a perfect marriage to be celebrated by many readers.
—School Library Journal

Boldly outlined, naïf-style illustrations are paired with mysterious mischief in this entry from Japanese artist Yokococo. ... It’s a sly junior mystery with some sparkling moments...
—Publishers Weekly

Yokococo’s graphic, textured images are full of charm, and the contrasting light and dark illustrations reinforce the good versus bad theme nicely. Kids will enjoy the surprise ending and may recognize the yin and the yang inside themselves.
—Booklist

From the Publisher

PreS-Gr 1—This strongly visual tale begins with a graffiti wall: "Catch me if you can!" and a paw-print tag. Angelic cat Matilda's perfection contrasts with masked cat Hans, who is loud and pulls stunts like releasing zoo animals. Matilda sees the $1,000 reward sign and sets Hans up for capture. The surprise climax is witty, and not to be ruined here. Yokococo uses large, spare mixed-media and watercolor cartoon scenes in black, gray, and white to enhance Hans's character, differing brilliantly with bright colors for zoo mayhem. The whimsy continues with simple figures, rounded lines, and visual quips like monkeys snacking atop the awning of a fruit store. Story and illustrations are a perfect marriage to be celebrated by many readers.—Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA

School Library Journal

First published in the U.K. in 2012 as Hans and Matilda, this quirky import combines minimal text, an odd twist and charmingly childlike pictures to create a brief (a)morality tale. Matilda, an anthropomorphic cream-colored cat dressed in a red-and-white polka-dot dress leads a blameless, if somewhat boring, life. Hans, meanwhile, is also cream-colored, though he sports black whiskers. Unlike Matilda, Hans lives to misbehave. While Matilda spends her days reading, gardening and tidying, Hans plays tricks and commits vandalism. When Matilda sees a wanted poster promising a big reward, she decides to turn Hans in. Whether she earns the reward is not revealed, but her behavior and Hans' certainly change as a result of her decision. Yokococo uses short, simple sentences to convey the action. Her mixed-media–and-watercolor illustrations have clean lines and appear to mirror the simplicity of the text. Closer examination, however, reveals that not only have a limited palette and matte paper been used for Hans' adventures, but Matilda's more colorful scenes appear to have been created on textured paper. This difference effectively prevents readers from predicting the plot twist while also emphasizing the cozy feel of Matilda's environment. Sophistication of illustrations aside, it is essentially a one-joke tale that will leave readers and listeners wondering what the point is--if any--yet still isn't likely to stir up much real interest. (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews