Super Why!: Hansel & Gretel—A Healthy Adventure

PreS-Gr 1—Super Why is calculated to appeal, as evidenced by the presence of flying superheroes, a dog, a princess, an alpha boy leader with a computer, and an educational veneer to appease adults. Whyatt Beanstalk lives in Storybrook Village with friends Red, Princess Pea, Littlest Pig, and Puppy. Each episode follows a convoluted formula in which a problem arises and the friends turn into the Super Readers, fly into a book and interact with the characters, and use their superpowers to find Super Letters to type into Super Why's computer to solve problems. Each Super Reader has a power that involves a reading skill. Simplistic problems have obvious solutions. In the first episode, Red eats sugary foods and drinks soda. He becomes momentarily hyper, then too tired to play. In the episode's book, the behavior of the witch, feasting on her candy house, mirrors Red's. When she eats healthy food, she has lasting energy; Super Letters spell "healthy." In the second story, Whyatt only wants to eat rice for dinner, and so the friends enter a book about a king who will only eat spaghetti. They learn that we need to eat a variety of foods to be healthy; Super Letters spell "variety." The program attempts to be interactive by asking viewers to identify letters and letter sounds. There's a lot going on—maybe too much—but it does reinforce early literacy skills.—Constance Dickerson, Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library, OH