Disney's Pocahontas (A Little Golden Book) Review

Manufacturer: Golden Books
Author(s): Justine Korman

ISBN: 0307302008 EAN: 9780307302007
Binding: Hardcover
Pages: 24
Reading Level: Ages 4-8

Average Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Ten unique sound effects and colorful illustrations tell the traditional tale of Pocahontas and how she saves the life of Captain John Smith, in an entertaining version based on the new Disney animated film.

User Submitted Disney's Pocahontas (A Little Golden Book) Reviews

August 8, 2008
Disney's Pocahontas
ISBN 0307302008 - Illustrations by Don Williams, fantastic. Standard Disney quality, vibrant colors and even a slightly delicate touch to some of the images. The story, though... I love the Pocahontas story and I admire Disney for trying. I don't think they did it very well here, and I can't blame adapter Justine Korman, who had a lot to pack into very few pages.

Pocahontas is expected to marry Kocoum, a man chosen by her father, but she feels that this isn't the right path for her. Grandmother Willow, a tree spirit, encourages her to follow her heart and her dreams. These lead her to meet John Smith, a man who has just arrived from England on a ship that is looking for gold. When it begins to look like their people plan to go to war, Pocahontas and Smith attempt to put a stop to it and risk death to keep peace.

The jump from Pocahontas and John Smith speaking different languages to them conversing freely is rather abrupt. Overall, the book tries so hard to cover so much material that it really doesn't do the story justice. Fans of the Disney movie will enjoy the book and they're the important audience. If it gets them reading, it's a good thing; for a better thing, buy ISBN 0307128865, another edition of the same tale.

ISBN 0307128865 - FIVE STARS! This Disney edition of Pocahontas, adapted by Margo Lundell, is a lot better than 0307302008. Lundell's version feels slower paced but still packs in most of the important details of the story. For simplicity, I'm re-using the recap from the other edition.

The illustrator of this edition is Jose Cardona and his work lives up to Disney's reputation. It's interesting to compare certain of his works with the ones in the other edition, by Don Williams, because they chose some of the same images. Cardona misses some of the delicate beauty that Williams captures, but his images are equally appealing. Lundell is still forced to deal with the sudden ability of Smith and Pocahontas to speak to one another, but she handles it slightly better. Worth picking up!

- AnnaLovesBooks

September 12, 2000
Excellent Presentation
This is a very good book for young children. The sounds go perfectly with the story, which is richly illustrated and true to the movie.

Many times these types of books have effects, which are made from token stock sounds. Not these, they are very faithful to the movie presentation.

My daughter went back to this day after day.

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