Schnitzel: A Cautionary Tale for Lazy Louts (Hardcover)
Apprenticed to a famous wizard, young Schnitzel is not known for his hard work. In fact, it’s just the opposite. He’s lazy and lacks motivation.
Interested in reading a lesson on the importance of hard work to your kids? I have just the book for you! Schnitzel: A Cautionary Tale for Lazy Louts is a re-telling of the classic tale of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. The young Schnitzel is a young apprentice to a famous wizard, but he is not too keen on doing the chores part of cleaning the house. Schnitzel’s laziness comes to head when an interesting door-to-door salesman entices him to buy a vacuum to help him with his work. Unfortunately, for Schnitzel, this is no ordinary dust-busting salesman (I guess the cape-wearing and fang-toothed appearance didn’t give him any clues?). Schnitzel naively overlooks this salesman’s ulterior motive and instead sees an answer to his housecleaning woes.
For those familiar with The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, you will know that taking what seems to be the easy road does not work out so well. In fact, the Wizard’s house looks just as messy (or worse!) after the salesman is long gone. Once the Sorcerer arrives, Schnitzel learns that there is no trick to getting things done right. If he wants to get things cleaned, it involves a mop and a pail. The end of the book has a wonderful page that explains the original poem by German poet, Johann Wolfgang van Goethe entitled “Der Zauberlehrling” (or “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”) and how hard work and dedication is the best way to achieve success – no short-cuts are necessary or fruitful. This is a perfect lesson for kids and adults alike and we really enjoyed the re-telling and hilariously scary (as my daughter, Brooke, put it) illustrations by Kevin Barry.
About the Author: Stephanie has lived in Oregon her entire life. She loves rain, never uses an umbrella and has plenty of weather-related excuses to stay indoors to read and write. Although she often has a gritty mystery on her nightstand, Stephanie remains loyal to her first literary love: picture books. She believes that picture books fulfill basic needs such as comfort, imagination and humor for both children and adults. Stephanie holds A Bachelor of Science Degree in Education and a Master of Arts Degree in Counseling Psychology. Her career has included being a teacher of children with severe emotional disabilities, children’s counseling and school administration. Her books Bedtime In The Meadow (Tiger Tales, 2013) and Under the Sleepy Stars (Tiger Tales, 2015) are lyrical and sweet; they are perfect for the nursery. Her picture books include A COOKIE FOR SANTA (Sleeping Bear Press, 2014) and THE LEGEND OF THE BEAVER’S TAIL (Sleeping Bear Press, 2015). Stephanie knows what children love, what gives them comfort and what makes them laugh. And she loves the fact that reading is not weather-dependent. www.stephanieshawauthor.com
About the Illustrator: Kevin Barry is the author of the highly-acclaimed novel City of Bohane and two short-story collections, Dark Lies the Island and There Are Little Kingdoms. He was awarded the Rooney Prize in 2007 and won the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award in 2012. For City of Bohane, he was short-listed for the Costa First Novel Award and the Irish Book Award, and won the Author s Club Best First Novel Prize, the European Union Prize for Literature, and the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. His short fiction has appeared in The New Yorker and elsewhere. He lives in County Sligo in Ireland. www.kevinbarryillustration.com.
Schnitzel: A Cautionary Tale for Lazy Louts (Hardcover)
List Price: $ 16.99 (eBook Available) (Available through Amazon Prime for $9.84)
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