Benjamin ElkinCritiques

The Queen of Sheba tries many ways to make King Solomon look foolish, and she might have succeeded if not for one very loyal bee.

A nicely illustrated retelling of one of the great moments in King Solomon's story.

Another one for my Little Free Library.

This beginner's book is about three different stories with the king and his sons. Throughout the book, the characters encounter tests, traps, and fires; fortunately, everyone is safe by the end! I like how the book is organized and would include it in my classroom, so it can help readers become more familiar to chapter books. For this reason, it could be read to grades 1st-2nd in any theme/lesson plan.½

Lucky wants to go fishing...but the brook is gone! He finds that a giant, Elmo, has dammed up the brook to make a lake. According to law, a giant gets to set a task; a human who can do the task gets to have one thing he/she asks for. A human who cannot must work for the giant for seven years. After Lucky's father and mother end up working for the giant, Lucky takes on the challenge. What I especially like about this book is that after defeating the giant, Lucky and his family help out and they all end up friendly with one another. Such a refreshing change from the 'kill the giant' mentality!

Adorable pictures and a clearly told story make this childen's early reader a hit in my opinion.

A fresh and fun collection of three stories about the good king and Ben. Easy to read and cheerfully illustrated, the stories are how Ben obtained his own puppy, how Ben helped the good king best the bad king, and how the good king helped Ben get his magic sack back. My copy was published in 1958 yet I think today's emerging readers would enjoy these stories and they'd also make great read-alouds for audiences of any age.

Retells the many ways the Queen of Sheba tests the wisdom of King Solomon.
While visiting King Solomon, the Queen of Sheba tests his wisdom with increasingly difficult problems. King Solomon's kindness to a bee is what ultimately saves him from the Queen of Sheba's manipulations.

Wise King Solomon. "Surely, wisdom is given to all living things, and the tiniest creatrues are the teachers of kings."

"If I can do a giant's task, The Giant must give me what I ask.'