Prelutsky, Jack. Peter Sis, illus. 2002. Scranimals. New York: Greenwillow Books.
Scranimals is a collection of nineteen poems by Jack Prelutsky, illustrated by Peter Sis that sets up a mythical place where hybrid beings: part animal, part plant, reside. Each creature has unique features that borrow from both sides of their family tree. Prelutsky's clever word play and vivid imagery are unforgettable in its inventiveness. The sheer silliness of many of the organisms makes these poems humorous and fun. Sis' artistry is detailed with subdued colors and realistic features incorporated throughout. Led by two young tour guides, this book is well organized presenting an entire universe populated with fantastical characters that is worth exploring.
What stands out immediately when first looking through this collection are the odd appellations for everything. Groups of "broccolions" hunt "antelopetunias," while "bananacondas" slink underfoot. Words like "toucanemones" and "hippopotamushrooms" are fun to sound out. Each page contains a pronunciation guide in case there is any question as to how a creature's name should be said. Prelutsky cleverly manipulates the names of existing flora and fauna, combining them in unusual ways to capture the characteristics of each imaginary animal.
Prelutsky continues to manipulate facts about each being combining them to describe the habits or actions of his subjects. A perfect of example of this lies in his description of the "Pandaffodil," "On a certain mountain meadow,/ If you're silent, if you're still,/ You may spy a single yellow, / Black, and white PANDAFFODIL./ You may even hear it yawning/ If the morning's just begun,/ Watch its petals slowly open/ To embrace the rising sun" (36). By combining two completely unrelated things, the colors of a panda and the anatomy and actions of a daffodil, Prelutsky infuses this poem with interest through wild imagination. This type of poem encourages abstract thought through concrete details.
In this particular collection, blending biology and imagination leads to delightful absurdity. It is almost like a punch line in a joke book. What do you get when you cross a radish and a shark? You get a creature whose sole thought, "Is to catch you and to bite you/ On your belly and behind" (29). What happens to an animal that is part potato and part toad when it sits by the road? "The day is hot, the ground is parched,/ And yet it sits as if it's starched" (12). Both of these verses manipulate common knowledge to make images that are ridiculous and entertaining. The rhythm and rhyme in each verse is also appealing.
Sis' artwork is detailed with soft, muted colors. Gentle pinks, blues, browns and greens dominate the pictures. Each page is filled with drawings not only of the beings themselves, but the landscapes which they inhabit. The organisms that are part bird are fanciful, yet eerie. The extremely accurate renditions of birds' heads sit awkwardly atop the rest of the body in the illustrations for "parrotters" and "cardinalbacore." However, this only invites further examination into the possibility of the bizarre. On the other hand, the "porcupineapple" and the "stormy petrelephant" are peculiarly charming. The boy and girl that serve as the tour guides for Scranimal Island are the most vibrant part of the illustrations on every page. It seems that Sis makes them most colorful in order accentuate their realness as opposed to their outrageously fictitious surroundings.
Scranimals is an incredibly appealing journey through a bizarre biological world inhabited by strange creatures. Prelutsky combines words, facts and fanciful imagery to form inspired poetry. Sis's renditions of the mythical animals perfectly support the verse. Together they create this universe that is instantly appealing and witty. Explorers of every age may enjoy this excursion.
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