Eloise Skates!
Disappointing compared to the original, but then this book is obviously aimed at beginning readers, so I’m the worst judge. Yes, it has the same character but lacks (of course) the lengthy prose, which was so fun in all its engaging detail. Very simple sentences and abbreviated storyline. Eloise goes ice skating with her Nanny and takes her dog along. Ridiculous, to put ice skates on a pug, but that’s funny in a silly kid’s book- the kind of absurd scenario I can shrug off and laugh at. What irked me was the very unrealistic way the people were depicted in ice skates! Nobody exists a rink looking like they did (walking strides, heel and opposite toe on the ice). That aside, the illustrations were fairly accurate to the original style, also the way Eloise continually gets into trouble with all her flair (and the adults ignore it or do nothing about it).
Borrowed from the public library. 32 pages, 2008
Eloise Visits the Zoo
I knew what to expect now, but I had it in hand, and was bored in the bath, so I read it. Another simple early-reader take on Eloise. This one seemed rather plain, more or less just a trip to the zoo, a list and depiction of all the animals they see. Eloise doesn’t get up to any hijinks- she’s scolded by Nanny for doing relatively mild things: letting a giraffe lick her hand, begging to take a goat home with them from the petting zoo, allowing the lorikeets to land on her head. In the end she gets hugged by a baby elephant’s trunk. That’s it. Endearing but dull. However, I’m not the intended audience so take all this with a big heap of salt.
Borrowed from the public library. 34 pages, 2009
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Did you know that Kay Thompson also acted in movies like Funny Face?