The Most Magnificent Thing

by Ashley Spires, Ashley Spires (Illustrator)

Overview

Award-winning author and illustrator Ashley Spires has created a charming picture book about an unnamed girl and her very best friend, who happens to be a dog. The girl has a wonderful idea. “She is going to make the most MAGNIFICENT thing! She knows just how it will look. She knows just how it will work. All she has to do is make it, and she makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!” But making her magnificent thing is anything but easy, and the girl tries and fails, repeatedly. Eventually, the girl gets really, really mad. She is so mad, in fact, that she quits. But after her dog convinces her to take a walk, she comes back to her project with renewed enthusiasm and manages to get it just right.

For the early grades’ exploration of character education, this funny book offers a perfect example of the rewards of perseverance and creativity. The girl’s frustration and anger are vividly depicted in the detailed art, and the story offers good options for dealing honestly with these feelings, while at the same time reassuring children that it’s okay to make mistakes. The clever use of verbs in groups of threes is both fun and functional, offering opportunities for wonderful vocabulary enrichment. The girl doesn’t just “make” her magnificent thing — she “tinkers and hammers and measures,” she “smoothes and wrenches and fiddles,” she “twists and tweaks and fastens.” These precise action words are likely to fire up the imaginations of youngsters eager to create their own inventions and is a great tie-in to learning about Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781554537044
Publisher:	Kids Can Press
Publication date:	04/01/2014
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	13,073
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD380L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Ashley Spires grew up in the Pacific Northwest, the supposed stomping grounds of Bigfoot. She is the author and illustrator of a number of books for children, including Small Saul and the Adventures of Binky the Space Cat. She was the recipient of the 2011 Silver Birch Express Award and the 2011 Hackmatack Award for Binky the Space Cat and was shortlisted for a Joe Shuster Comics for Kids Award and an Eisner Award for Binky Under Pressure. Ashley currently lives in British Columbia.

Ashley Spires grew up in the Pacific Northwest, the supposed stomping grounds of Bigfoot. She is the author and illustrator of a number of books for children, including Small Saul and the Adventures of Binky the Space Cat. She was the recipient of the 2011 Silver Birch Express Award and the 2011 Hackmatack Award for Binky the Space Cat and was shortlisted for a Joe Shuster Comics for Kids Award and an Eisner Award for Binky Under Pressure. Ashley currently lives in British Columbia.

Editorial Reviews

01/27/2014
For her story of a girl’s ambition to build “the most magnificent thing,” Spires (the Binky the Space Cat books) draws her towing a red wagon full of random junk. “The girl saws and glues and adjusts. She stands, examines and stares. She twists and tweaks and fastens.” Shadowed by her stubby bulldog assistant, she hits a roadblock, and her frustration grows: “Her hands feel too big to work and her brain is too full of all the not-right things.” It’s the bulldog that realizes that his boss needs a break. In the act of taking a walk, her mind clears: “Bit by bit, the mad gets pushed out of her head.” The “magnificent thing” turns out to be a bulldog-size sidecar for her scooter. It’s a useful description of the creative process, an affirmation of making rather than buying, and a model for girl engineers. There are quiet laughs, too, like the description of the girl’s work area as “somewhere out of the way”—smack in the middle of the sidewalk, that is, annoying the maximum number of neighbors. Ages 3–7. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

It's a useful description of the creative process, an affirmation of making rather than buying, and a model for girl engineers.—Publishers Weekly

Spires' understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle characterization for maximum delight.—Kirkus Reviews - Starred Review

... Spires's buddy tale of overcoming obstacles and learning to manage expectations will likely find an appreciative audience, especially in a classroom setting.—Quill & Quire

This indefatigable little girl won't let frustration get in the way of creating her magnificent contraption. Determination is key!—Today's Parent

A little girl has big plans to make the most magnificent thing, with the help of her canine sidekick.—Canadian Family

This is a solid choice with a great message that encourages kids not to quit in the face of disappointment but rather to change their perspective and start over.—School Library Journal

In the end, it's precisely the kind of book we need for kids these days. Perfection is a myth. Banged up, beat up, good enough can sometimes be the best possible solution to a problem. A lesson for the 21st century children everywhere.—Elizabeth Bird, SLJ.com

Young readers will love the surprise ending. Readers learn that not everything comes out “just the right way” instantly.—International Reading Association

The Most Magnificent Thing is a wonderful fable about effort and reward, in a tone perfectly understandable to younger children. A definite addition to public and primary school collections.—CM Magazine

An entertaining book for the very young, this is also a useful reminder that most problems can be worked out if we give it time. Spires's digital artwork does a masterful job of injecting humour.—The Montreal Gazette

Without being heavy-handed, the author has shown how perseverance, determination, vision, and dealing with your emotions can pay off. Illustrations add charm to the story ... This is a good read-aloud.—Library Media Connection

The Most Magnificent Thing captures the ups and downs of the creative process perfectly ... with honesty and even a little elegance.—Globe and Mail

From the Publisher

04/01/2014
K-Gr 2—A girl decides to make something magnificent with the help of her assistant—her dog, but they "are shocked to discover that the thing isn't magnificent. Or good. It isn't even kind-of-sort-of okay. It is all wrong. The girl tosses it aside and gives it another go." From her efforts, children see the importance of planning, gathering supplies, building, and not giving up when a good idea doesn't initially work out. Ample use of white space makes the digital artwork pop. The text consists mainly of one- or two-line captions for the pictures, and the layout and design are spot-on, building action with a smart use of vignettes, boxed illustrations, and spreads. Clever use of artwork conveys the youngster's spectrum of emotions as she "saws and glues and adjusts," "smashes," "pummels," and "explodes" ("It is not her finest moment."). Then, finally, the girl finishes, and her scooter really is "the most magnificent thing." This is a solid choice with a great message that encourages kids not to quit in the face of disappointment but rather to change their perspective and start over.—Melissa Smith, Royal Oak Public Library, MI

School Library Journal

★ 2014-02-26
Making things is difficult work. Readers will recognize the stages of this young heroine's experience as she struggles to realize her vision. First comes anticipation. The artist/engineer is spotted jauntily pulling a wagonload of junkyard treasures. Accompanied by her trusty canine companion, she begins drawing plans and building an assemblage. The narration has a breezy tone: "[S]he makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!" The colorful caricatures and creations contrast with the digital black outlines on a white background that depict an urban neighborhood. Intermittent blue-gray panels break up the white expanses on selected pages showing sequential actions. When the first piece doesn't turn out as desired, the protagonist tries again, hoping to achieve magnificence. A model of persistence, she tries many adjustments; the vocabulary alone offers constructive behaviors: she "tinkers," "wrenches," "fiddles," "examines," "stares" and "tweaks." Such hard work, however, combines with disappointing results, eventually leading to frustration, anger and injury. Explosive emotions are followed by defeat, portrayed with a small font and scaled-down figures. When the dog, whose expressions have humorously mirrored his owner's through each phase, retrieves his leash, the resulting stroll serves them well. A fresh perspective brings renewed enthusiasm and—spoiler alert—a most magnificent scooter sidecar for a loyal assistant. Spires' understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle characterization for maximum delight. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews