The Impossible Riddle - Hardcover

Ellen Jackson has written and published many fiction and nonfiction books for children. She is the author of the award-winning TURN OF THE CENTURY, CINDER EDNA, and THE BALLAD OF BOOSTER BOGG, among others. Ellen lives in California. You can visit her online at EllenJackson.net.

Ages 5^-8. In a folktale that will be familiar to some, a czar of Russia loves his daughter--and her potato pancakes--so much that he doesn't want her to marry and leave him. One day, the czar asks a farmer why his beard is gray when his hair is black. The question and the farmer's answer become a riddle the czar uses to foil suitors. Only one young man is wise enough to find the man who holds the key to the question; when the czar attempts to take out his anger on the farmer about being outfoxed, the farmer is able to turn the tables on the czar as well. The telling is on the long side but engaging, and children, especially in the primary grades, will like the wordplay. The artwork, though bright, with eye-catching borders, has a certain stiffness, especially in its characterizations. For larger collections. Ilene Cooper