Giant John Makes a Big Mark Wherever He Goes

One of my favorite authors is Arnold Lobel, who I associate primarily with his four Frog and Toad books. But he had other noteworthy work too. I recently checked out Giant John, which dates back to 1964. There was something familiar about the story and its characters, so I suspect I've read it before, but that must have been many years ago. Mostly, this simple story of a well-meaning giant was new to me, while bearing the distinct stamp of Lobel.

This story is told in a straightforward manner, like many old folktales. It isn't as funny or as profound as some of Lobel's other work, but the protagonist is very likable, and the overall tone of the tale is so cheerful it's hard to avoid breaking into a smile while reading. As with most of Lobel's work, the colors in Giant John are basically limited to various hues of green and brown, giving the book an earthy feel. John wears a green shirt and reddish vest. His socks and hat are a drab shade of brown; his leggings and shoes are black. Handily, he also has a giant-sized green umbrella, which he is perfectly happy to share.

Everything that John does in this book is motivated by a desire to help others. He leaves the home he shares with his mother so that he can earn some money to buy them food. The work he finds involves making life simpler for a royal family living in a tall castle. He finds lots of ways to help the king, the queen, the princess and their dog, and it's clear that he's not just in it for the money. He really cares about these people. Oddly, this king and queen seem to have no subjects, and their castle is scarcely large enough for their family to expand. Perhaps they merely like to think of themselves as royalty and built a home to match their fantasy. In any event, these are pleasant people, and John is ideally situated to aid them, since he stands as tall as their entire castle.

Unfortunately, that's also a liability under certain circumstances. John isn't generally very clumsy, but whenever he hears the music of the fairies of the forest, he is unable to resist dancing. And a dancing giant is hazardous to anyone in his path. The impression one gets is that John never told his friends the fairies that he was leaving and that he would be back as soon as he could. Thus, they felt the need to track him down. Hence, the story potentially offers a subtle lesson in the importance of communicating properly with one's friends and loved ones. That could extend to his mother as well. If she had indicated a little sooner just how little food was in the house - because apparently John wasn't paying attention - she might have been spared several days of hunger and the indignity of considering eating her shoe.

Affable John is an easy fellow to embrace, and there's humor in the creative ways he finds of using his unique talents. The architecturally improbable result of his Extreme Home Makeover on the castle is especially amusing. Though Frog and Toad will always be my favorite Lobel creations, I still get a big kick out of Giant John.

Freddie Highmore and Joan Plowright Impress in The Spiderwick Chronicles

I first stumbled upon Freddie Highmore in Two Brothers, the 2004 film in which he portrayed a young boy with a pet tiger that eventually had to turned out of the house, only to be reunited with him months later. His performance impressed me, and I've kept an eye out for his movies ever since. The most recent was The Spiderwick Chronicles, a fantastical tale about three siblings who unearth some very unsettling secrets about the rambling home they have just occupied.

The Spiderwick Chronicles are a series of five books for intermediate readers. I've been aware of them for years, but I never read them. From what I understand, this movie covers all five books; I couldn't say how faithfully it adapts them, but the film is entertaining from an outsider's perspective.

Highmore plays both Jared and Simon Grace, a pair of American twins. There's an odd husky quality to his voice, but his American accent is entirely convincing. At first I had a little trouble keeping the twins straight, but Highmore made them distinct enough from each other that I eventually managed. Jared is the one who happens upon the titular volume, a compendium of information about magical beings that could be very dangerous in the wrong hands. He soon discovers that his house is surrounded by such creatures, though seeing them requires either a special eyepiece or a deeper level of vision bestowed by a hobgoblin (Seth Rogen). The only exception is Thimbletack (Martin Short), a curious little fellow who is Jared's staunchest ally in the magical world.

The movie is a rousing adventure filled with CGI, to a sometimes distracting extent. I almost preferred the scenes in which the beasts were invisible and liked the way the theme of proper sight played out over the film. I also liked the family dynamic; the twins fight to keep their home and defeat their shape-shifting nemesis Mulgarath (Nick Nolte) with the help of their spunky sister Mallory (Sarah Bolger), while struggling to come to grips with the separation of their mom (Mary-Louise Parker) and dad (Andrew McCarthy).

The most affecting performance came from Joan Plowright as the children's aunt Lucinda, long institutionalized for her assertion that her father (David Strathairn) was carried off by fairies when she was a girl. For most of her long life, she has been craving his return, and it so happens that he is the key to bringing down Mulgarath. I found this father-daughter subplot to be the true heart of the movie.

The Spiderwick Chronicles isn't quite up there with the best fantasy films I've seen, but it's action-packed and family friendly, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys the genre.