School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-4 A good, fast-paced retelling of a folktale from the Russian district of Geor gia in which a king who has a set of ram's horns on his head wishes to keep the con dition a dim dark secret from everyone. His even bigger problem is to find a barber who can keep his secret. He thinks he has found such a closed-mouth barber, but somehow the secret gets out and the bar ber saves his head by some quick think ing. The ink and watercolor illustrations are mainly in earthtones and are reminis cent of Uri Shulevitz' illustrations for Ar thur Ransome's The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship (Farrar, 1968) in their peasant qualities. Children will enjoy this one for its turn of plot and the illustra tions. Students of folktales will enjoy it as it highlights an area of the world whose folktales usually receive little retelling. Kay McPherson, Central Atlanta-Fulton Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Ages 4-7. Pevear ably relates a Russian tale about a behorned king determined to keep his strange headgear a secret. Only his barbers know, and those unhappy men are imprisoned as soon as they cut his hair. A new young barber, recently come to town, is the latest to be summoned by the king; he's delighted with the request until his patron informs him of his predecessors' fate. Though fearful, the young barber is no fool and possesses a flattering tongue; he pleases the king and is let go on the condition that he never disclose the king's secret. When the secret is revealed and the barber faces imminent execution, the young man is able to strike a bargain that wins him his freedom even as it teaches the king to accept the futility of trying to hide the truth about his appearance. The accompanying full-color illustrations have vitality and grace; Rayevsky displays fine draftsmanship and a sense of drama that imbues the story's characters with a life of their own. A handsome edition of a meaty tale. DMW. 398.2'2 Folklore / Barbers Folklore / Kings, queens, rulers, etc. Folklore [CIP] 86-23525
