Gladys and the Magic Chicken

By Adam Rubin; illustrated by Adam Rex

Informational Resources:

Author Information:

Adam Rubin’s  Website:

https://www.adamrubinhasawebsite.com/

Personal Interview with Adam Rubin:

https://www.teachingbooks.net/qltttmz

Audiobook Excerpt by Adam Rubin:

https://www.teachingbooks.net/qlwtbfx

Illustrator Information:

Adam Rex’s Website:

https://www.adamrex.com/

Adam Rex’s Blog:

http://adamrex.blogspot.com/

Personal Interview with Adam Rex (27.16):

https://www.teachingbooks.net/qlvh452

Other books by Adam Rex:

https://www.teachingbooks.net/tb.cgi?aid=6089

Activities & Resources:

Activities:

Crafts

Make a magical chicken bookmark:

https://www.redtedart.com/easter-chick-bookmark-designs/

Chicken character art:

https://www.stirthewonder.com/chick-chicken-crafts-for-kids/

Ancient Tombs and Boulders:

https://www.earlybirdgetstheivy.com/early-bird-medley/ancient-egypt-makerspace

Social Studies:

Ancient Civilizations: 

https://www.ducksters.com/searchducksters.php?q=ancient+civilization

Ancient Civilization: How Ancient times began (4:44):

https://www.youtube.com/embed/IAQAAJo1fI0

Ancient History: 

https://www.historyforkids.net/

MakerSpace Activities:

Magical chicken eggs:

https://www.funathomewithkids.com/2014/03/magic-easter-eggs-two-ways-hatching-anhtml?m=1

How to draw an Ancient Scroll (3:52): 

https://www.you-tube.com/watch?v=pWNQKyfZnCY 

Ancient Pyramid Challenge:

https://www.teachstudentsavvy.com/2017/05/ancient-egypt-stem-ideas.html

Fortune Teller Instructions: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/1f/6a/03/1f6a03c91f0a9370c5c16d7464ad92fe.jpg

Fortune Teller: 

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/e8/b5/4e/e8b54ea501d3ce7a27d958c530c420e2.jpg

Discussion Questions:

Based on the title and cover of the book, what are some predictions you can make about the story?

What do you think of the book’s title? What other title might you choose?

Most people choose Gladys as their favorite character of the book. Who is your favorite character and why? 

Gladys was a dancing chicken with magic powers. Do you think Gladys really has magic powers or just things that are coincidences that happen around her?

What words best describe the Shepherd Boy as a young child in Ancient Times? 

What significant role did the Traveling Merchant play in the story?

The villagers in the market all bought magic stones and bones from the Traveling Merchant but still did not believe that the chicken could be magic. What are your thoughts as to why they did not believe? 

Describe in detail the character of the Purple Pooh-bah. 

How did the Purple Pooh-bah and the Brave Swordsman come in contact with each other? 

How did Gladys get the chance to live in the royal palace with the Learned Princess? 

Initially, how did the Learned Princess react to the magical gift her father offered to her?  As time went on, how did the Learned Princess and Gladys become friends? 

How did the pirate ship play a large role in the story? 

Why did the Lone Rider scoop up the magic chicken and swiftly take her away? 

At the end of the story, the No-Longer Lone Rider and the No-Longer Shepherd boy were joined together at a happy home in the mountains with what character? 

Describe your favorite part of the book. What makes this part of the story your favorite?

The illustrator, Adam Rex, used vibrant colors on every page of the book in his illustrations. Why do you think he used gold banners throughout the book as representation for the wishes? 

Describe something you learned in this book that can help you in life.

Book Talk Teasers:

Read the reader’s theater for Gladys and The Magic Chicken.

Watch the book trailer on the Texas Bluebonnet Award YouTube Channel.

Watch the author interview on the Texas Bluebonnet Award YouTube Channel.

Watch the illustrator interview on the Texas Bluebonnet Award YouTube Channel.

Book Trailer:

https://www.teachingbooks.net/qlia5um

Book Trailer:

https://twitter.com/Rubingo/status/1452981043162714118?s=20

Read Alikes: 

Medieval Times

Beaton, Kate. The princess and the pony. Princess Pinecone would like a real war horse for her birthday, instead of which she gets a plump, cute pony--but sometimes cuteness can be a kind of weapon, especially in a fight with dodgeballs and spitballs and hairballs and squareballs. (NoveList Plus)

Gauld, Tom. The little wooden robot and the log princess. To save his sister, an enchanted log princess, after she is accidentally carted off to parts unknown, a little wooden robot must summon all his courage to bring her back home. (NoveList Plus)

Shilz, Laura Amy. Princess Cora and the crocodile. Unhappy queen-in-training Cora receives a pet crocodile from her fairy godmother, who disrupts her mundane daily routine. (NoveList Plus)

Woolard, Eli. The dragon and the nibblesome knight. A case of mistaken identity allows a young dragon and knight to become friends, but the two sworn enemies must decide what to do when they discover the truth. (NoveList Plus)

Chickens

Geron, Eric. Poultrygeist. After meeting his demise crossing the road, Chicken comes back as a noisy troublemaking ghost, and knowing that scaring people is bad, decides to transform himself into a friendly ghost. (NoveList Plus)

Reviews:

Rubin, Adam. Gladys the Magic Chicken. Penguin Random House/G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2021.

Booklist Starred

Gladys the Magic Chicken.

By Adam Rubin (author) Adam Rex (illustrator)

Penguin Random House/G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2021. unp. $15.99 (978-0-593-32560-5) Grades K-2. 

REVIEW: First Published September 15,  2021 (Vol. 118, No. 2)

Gladys the Magic Chicken. 

By Adam Rubin. Illus. by Adam Rex. 

Oct. 2021. 48p. Putnam, $18.99 (9780593325605). K-Grade 2. 

REVIEW. First published September 15, 2021 (Vol. 118, No. 2) (Booklist). 

In this magical (not to mention hilarious) tale from “Ancient Times,” a chicken that grants wishes—or maybe just has a real knack for being around when wishes are granted—passes through the hands of a shepherd boy who wishes he were beautiful, a pouty teenage princess delighted to be swept away to sea by a dashing pirate, and several others on the way to becoming a legend. In Rex’s rolling, rambunctious illustrations, Gladys, ejecting the occasional egg and positively radiating cluelessness, floats through the brisk action alongside comically theatrical figures and undulating scrolls of dialogue printed in an appropriately geometric type style. Misadventure soon follows misadventure in quick succession on the way to an unlikely happy-ever-after reunion with the shepherd boy, who has achieved his wish by growing up to become a dazzling hunk. In the annals of fabulous fowl, surely Gladys reigns supreme, and readers wishing themselves to see “magic in the world” will join the princess in singing her praise: “Her dancing is enchanting, / And her eggs are tasty too. / Glaaaaadys the Maaaagic Chiiiiicken, / Abra-cock-a-doodle-dee-doo!” —John Peters 

Used with the permission of Booklist  https://www.booklistonline.com/

Additional Reviews Available

• Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, 10/01/21

• Catholic Library World, 03/01/22

• Publishers Weekly, 08/16/21