The Custodian from The Black Lagoon was written by Mike Thaler and illustrated by Jared Lee. This picture book was written from the point of view of a small boy who lives in terror of the frightening Fester Smudge, the school custodian.
Mr. Smudge is portrayed as a Boris Karloff-type character, dark and scary creeping about at night. Multiples references are made to other characters in literature like the Phantom of the Opera and Dr. Frankenstein. These references open the door to book discussions. To make the story even more appealing, skulls, rats, dragons, and other creepy critters fill the pages.
The author uses more sophisticated vocabulary than is often used in picture books; however, his word choice lends itself to vocabulary study with lots of examples of multisyllabic words, double consonants, and verb tenses. Literary techniques like onomatopoeia add interest. This picture book could be used by many grade levels just for the vocabulary alone.
Like many picture books, the moral of the story is not to judge other people as Mr. Smudge turns out to be a nice fellow. I laugh at this book because it reminds me very much of the school where I work. We have the nicest custodian in our dark dungeon!
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5 comments:
I like the "...From the Black Lagoon" series and have not read this one. It sounds good. Since I do not work younger students, I've always wondered if young kids (pre-k, k, etc.) enjoy these books or if they are scared by them. Do you know?
Why did you choose this one? I give these as gifts to school friends...will have to get this one, too!
I like to find humor in books and the irony in all of the "...From the Black Lagoon" books always makes me laugh. I haven't read this one, however. Maybe I should get it and read it to my custodian. He would laugh! I bought a collection of these stories this year, to read to my students. Every year, on the first day of school, I read The Teacher from the Black Lagoon to my class, to lead into a discussion about "What Good Teachers" do and say and "What Good Students Do and Say". It is always a lesson that is filled with laughter, but that can be a reminder to us about how we are to treat teachers and other students with respect. When times get rough in the classroom, I threaten to turn into the teacher from the Black Lagoon. It brings a smile!
The Custodian from The Black Lagoon sounds like the perfect book for those boys who don't think anything good can come from reading a book. I've had several students with this attitude in the past (working with students with learning disabilities) and while girls get interested in princesses and fairies, it takes a little more to inspire many of the boys. Skulls, rats, dragons and a creepy custodian are just the thing!
I love this series. These books are a perfect read for children in 2nd or 3rd grade. I love the illustrations. I would read "The Teacher from The Black Lagoon" to my third graders at the beginning of the year.
Other beginning of the year favorite reads are "The Awful Ardvarks" by Reeve Lindburg and "Miss Nelson is Missing" by Harry Allard.
Julieanne,
You asked if younger students would be scared by the "...From the Black Lagoon" books. I cannot say for sure. However, my fifth grade students are very worldly, shockingly so. They seem to be oblivious to simple things like like dark corridors or custodians. I do not know if younger students would be frightened by these books. I doubt it.
I choose this book because Mr. Jones, our custodian, is such a character that he is one of the few bright spots in my day.
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