Retold: Bobbi Miller

Illustrator: Megan Lloyd

Publisher and Year: Holiday House, 2012

Number of Pages: 29

Genre: Fiction

Analysis:

            Miss Sally Ann and The Panther is a story about a woman named Miss Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind and her adventure with Fireeyes the panther. The story starts off talking about all the things she does which is spin yarn, make clothes, and milk cows. On day she goes into the forest and runs into the panther, they fight for days then they become good friends. The panther ends up living with Miss Sally Ann in her house and they cook, clean, play and sing together.

This text could function as both a window and a mirror for the readers. It would function as a window since it is story that will probably never actually happen in real life. So readers are on the outside, looking in at all the crazy things that are happening to the panther and Miss Sally Ann. On the other hand it could also function as a mirror for a reader if they have personally experienced getting into an argument with a friend then realizing that the fight is not worth losing the friendship. The only two characters that are in this text is Miss Sally Ann who is a White female and Fireeyes the panther, no cultural diversity is seen. I noticed that in the beginning of the story the author listed off all the chores that Miss Sally Ann does. All the chores that were listed were stereotypical female jobs. In the middle of the story Miss Sally Ann breaks the stereotypical gender roles when she fights off the panther. But at the end of the story when the panther and Miss Sally Ann are friends she goes back to doing stereotypical females chores like gardening. Besides the stereotypical gender roles throughout the text I really enjoyed this book, it was entertaining and funny.

I love the pictures that are in this book. On every page the images are all framed but unique. In the beginning when Miss Sally Ann is doing her chores the pictures are relaxed and bright. When she goes into the forest the color scheme starts to get darker. Once the panther is introduced the images are coming out of the frame making it feel more hectic. For example on page 12 Miss Sally Ann has Fireeyes by the tail and he is digging his way out of the frame and there is splatted mud all over the page. This allows the reader to feel like they are a part of the action. When the fight is over and Miss Sally Ann and Fireeyes are friends the images become more controlled and the colors again become brighter. I really enjoyed how the illustrator did this because the colors help the reader feel scared when they are fighting or happy and warm when they become friends and are sitting by the fire. Overall I enjoyed this book, I think it would be better without the gender stereotypes but it was entertaining and the images were beautiful.