Smile!

by Geraldine McCaughrean

When Flash's plane crashes in the wilderness, he finds himself injured and alone, armed with nothing but a cheap instant camera. Then out of the sunlight appears a girl in a scarlet dress. Sutira and her brother take Flash home to their remote village, where the people have never met a photographer--or seen a photo. Flash has ten pictures left, but what should he take a picture of? The most beautiful girl in the village? An irreplaceable piece of art? A cow? Flash has always known the magic of photography, but not until he takes those last ten pictures does he realize just what wonders can be worked with light, love, and a camera.


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Fiction, Childrens

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Geraldine McCaughrean is a British children's novelist. She has written more than 170 books, including Peter Pan in Scarlet (2004), the official sequel to Peter Pan commissioned by Great Ormond Street Hospital, the holder of Peter Pan's copyright. Her work has been translated into 44 languages worldwide. She has received the Carnegie Medal twice and the Michael L. Printz Award among others.

Reviews

[MaryAnn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a Juvenile Fiction book I ran across while looking for another YA book by the same title. It is a familiar sweet story with pathos and a twist at the end. I wondered though what age group would I give it too? The problem for an adult reading juvenile fiction is that sometimes you really just forget what your kid self would think? Would she empathize, go along for the fun of it, really enjoy the flight of fantastic imagination or get into the first few pages and put it down saying, Weird.

I enjoyed the simplicity of the presentation and the gist of the story but I wrinkled my brow over the ending, it was weird but maybe necessary.

[Take Verdin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una historia sobre la magia de las fotografías y de como estás pueden retratar el momento exacto de in suceso que nos causo mucha felicidad o bien en el que se puede plasmar el pasado y así recordarlo en el presente. Mostrando al mundo cualquier sentimiento. Por eso: ¡sonríe!, después el ¡flash!, no te permitirá cambiar el resultado. Historia que buen puede pasar desapercibida y no te perderás de nada. Aunque bien no pierdes mucho si te sientas a leerlo ya que es muy corto y tiene ilustraciones; la lectura se va como agua, en menos de media hora ya te lo acabaste.

La historia no da para más. Pero bueno ya no hay más que decir a leer el siguiente.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read about Flash the photographer whose plane crashes on an island inhabited by English-speaking natives who have never seen a camera. He is befriended by Sutira and her brother Olu. Flash has an instant camera with 10 shots left. How will he use his last 10 shots?
Almost fable-like in its simplicity, Smile! is a sweet read.

[Hilary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A photographer crash lands his small plane on an island and has the town elder choose the subject matter of the last 10 photos of his Polaroid camera. The way the author portrays the inhabitants of this unnamed island has come into question in various reviews, but it could possibly be a good discussion starter. Sweet story with lots of possibility.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting short novel of a man whose plane crashes in a strange place and he is saved by natives who know nothing of modern technology. He saves a polaroid camera with a few shots let and thus the "Smile" title. Nothing deep or profound, although that would have been possible with the context. There is a bit of mystery at the end.

[Neill Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

When a photographer crashes his plane in the tropical wilderness he is rescued by some local children. He manages to salvage an instant camera that has only ten pictures left. After initial misunderstandings the villagers ask him to choose ten pictures from their village to save for the future. This is the story of those choices.

[Brenda Thompson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was it a dream or was it real. A plane crashes in a remote area and the survivor is taken to the site of a secluded tribe. The survivor is a photographer and impresses the tribe with his ability to paint their pictures with his camera. He only has a limited number of photos - he has a polaroid camera. So he has to decide which photos are most prescious to the tribe.

[Varsha Seshan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming, simple book. It is one of those books that's written for very young readers, but makes a reader of any age smile. The name of the book expresses everything, because that's what the book makes you do!

[Lacey Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitely illustrates that a picture is worth a thousand words. Pictures tell their own story and have an important meaning to those who take them, and there is a reason and story behind every picture taken.

[Bettie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Big Toe books - Flash is a photographer!

[Vandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

one novel that i could re-read....the end esp.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

great little novel for middle primary

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I use this with my HB (level 2 ESL) class. It is a stretch for most of them, but worth it for the figurative language it exposes them to and the deeper thinking it engenders.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Photographer crash lands in airplane with only a Polaroid camera. Too many holes in the story. It had a quality of "then he woke up" at the end.

[aarifa · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you had only 10 photographs left to take, what would you photograph? That is the underlying story of this book which makes you think about which memories are worth saving.