Brundibar

A story that will stay with the reader for years to come.

Author: Tony Kushner Illustrator: Maurice Sendak Pages: 56 Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children Published Date: 12/29/2003 Genre: Fiction - Picture Book HC Price: $19.95 Publisher's Recommended Reading Level: All ages Read Aloud: 4+ Read Alone: 6+

Common Sense Note

Although older children and adults will certainly notice that several of the characters in the book wear yellow arm bands with a Star of David, and that Brundibar, with his bristly, cropped mustache, bears a strong resemblance to Hitler, the historical context is not necessary to an appreciation of the story. All children are familiar with bullies, and the small children's triumph in the story is cheering and satisfying. In the end they say to the reader, "Remember, please be brave and bullies will behave!" Unfortunately, justice is sometimes a long time coming.

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Common Sense Review

Reviewed By: Marigny Dupuy

This is a dazzling collaboration between two stars in their own fields. Tony Kushner is a renowned playwright and author. He has won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, as well as two Tony Awards for best play. A six-hour television version of his acclaimed play, Angels in America, aired on HBO. Maurice Sendak is the premier creator of books for children. He is the winner of the Caldecott Medal for his beloved Where the Wild Things Are, as well as the Hans Christian Andersen Medal, and many more.

On one level Kushner's lyrical tale is a simple one. The language is alive with imagery and rhythm, and reads aloud beautifully. There are many layers of significance beyond the surface, however. The opera Brundibar was composed in the terrible time in Europe just before the start of World War II. It is based on Aristophanes Lysistrata and is similarly a cry for people to join ranks against an intolerable situation. In Lysistrata the women band together to stop a war and in Brundibar a group of children becomes a force with which to be reckoned.

Sendak uses a new combination of media for his signature illustrations: colored pencil, crayon, and brush pen. The pictures are vibrantly colored and filled with additional plot details and text. Expressive and dramatic, they are meant to be pored over. Sendak fans will appreciate the cameo appearance of the baker from In the Night Kitchen.

Once appreciated, BRUNDIBAR is a story that will stay with the reader for years to come.

Plot Summary:

The mother of a small eastern European boy named Pepicek and his younger sister Aninku is sick. The doctor tells the children that their mother needs milk, but they have no money to buy it. In order to earn money the children sing in the town square, but the greedy hurdy-gurdy man, Brundibar, resents the competition and seeks revenge. With the help of three talking animals, 300 school children, and eventually 1000 adults, the terrible Brundibar is run out of town and the children get home safely with milk for their mother.

Taken from a children's opera published in 1938 in Czechoslovakia, with libretto by Adolph Hoffmeister and music by Hans Krasa, the story is rich with historical reference and emotional resonance. In 1942, Krasa (1899-1944) was arrested and sent to Terezin, the walled city north of Prague used by the Nazis as a prison. There, along with other illustrious Jewish musicians, artists, and intellectuals, he tried to make the wretchedness of their circumstances a bit more bearable through his art. With Krasa directing, the children of Terezin performed the opera "Brundibar" fifty-five times. The opera was tremendously successful because of its message of hope and resistance. Sadly, both Krasa and the children of Terezin were eventually deported to Auschwitz where they all perished.