Puff the Magic Dragon by Peter Yarrow, Lenny Lipton Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Puff the Magic Dragon
Book Review: Politically Correct Version of Puff
Summary: 2 Stars
Are you looking for a politically correct version of Puff the Magic Dragon? Then you found it! Even though it completely destroys the iambic pentameter, everything has been rewritten to not be gender specific.
For example,
"Dragon's live forever, but not so little boys and girls,
Painted wings and giant rings make way for other toys."
Yeah, even though the story is about a little BOY, the authors found it necessary to change the poetry to include girls too, at the expense of the rhythm.
But there are no girls in Puff the Magic Dragon, you might say. Well, there is in this version. See little Jackie grows up in this version and gives Puff the Magic Dragon to his daughter so she too can play with Puff. And who thought that Puff the Magic Dragon was melancholic? No, it is happy after all! And politically correct too!
It's too bad, because the artwork in this book is very well done. The cloth cover binding is high-quality with a glossy image of Puff centered. Even the dust jacket is top rate.
I would highly recommend sharing this story with your children, but do yourself a favor and don't buy this altered version. It's not nearly as powerful as the original.
Book Review: Hollywood Ending
Summary: 1 Stars
I am of the opinion that one of the things that makes Puff the Magic Dragon a great song is the bittersweet ending. That and Peter, Paul and Mary's three-part harmony. Sadly, this book adds a Hollywood ending by suggesting, through the pictures, that Puff's life of play continues with the next generation. Okay, maybe it does, and maybe some people had it figured that way. Puff is the song we grew up with and Puff is the song we sing to our kids. Duh! But don't go spelling it out! Book Review: Beautiful creation....
Summary: 4 Stars
I chose this item after reading other reviews on it. The illustrations are fabulous! The contents are just that of the song but perfect for "little" viewers. Clever inclusion of the CD in the back of the book for storage. I bought one for a gift and then ordered a second one for myself. After previewing the book and listening to the CD it would have been hard to give it away. I'm so glad to have one around to share with guests.Book Review: Singing it makes it wonderful
Summary: 5 Stars
I have a 3-year-old, and he absolutely loves this book. I sing it to him, and that makes all the difference (as it really is just the lyrics to the song). Singing it brings the story to life along with the absolutely beautiful pictures. He took it to daycare for show-n-tell one day, and she sang it to his class, and they requested it again - they loved it. The CD has the song, and 1 or 2 more, and then it has just the music of the song, which we sing and dance to as well.Book Review: really only a comment
Summary: 5 Stars
This is really only a comment rather than a review but I am very happy that the book changes the ending because even now (in my 50s) I can't hear the song without tearing up at the sad ending.