Bink and Gollie

This was a book about two friends who go through struggles that normal relationships go through. When Bink gets a new pet jealousy sinks in and Gollie feels left out. They get through it and in the end remain the best of friends.

The main characters of this tale are Bink and Gollie. The story tells about the symbiotic relationship between the two friends, and illustrates the compromises and positive outcomes a person can get from having a good friend.

This is a very short, but cute and easy chapter book. There is not much text on each page, and the real stars of the book are often the illustrations and humorous plots.

Bink and Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee stars Bink (the short blonde girl) and Gollie (the taller brunette) as they

Show More

share their daily adventures together. They are incredibly different best friends. Bink is more a dreamer, and Gollie is more of a realist. However, they always seem to bond over pancakes and roller skates.

I expect there to be more books about Bink and Gollie in the future. They seem to be good choices for children who are just learning to let go of heavily illustrated books. Since some of the humor and words are sophisticated, I would recommend this to a child who is young, but is more mature. Still even those who don't grasp all the humor or words will probably really enjoy reading about two unique best friends in a beautifully illustrated book.

Show Less

Bink and Gollie has a charming storyline with some excellent art. It begins with the two friends who live next door to each other, calling each other up to do what they both love most, rollerskating. On their trip around town, Bink sees a sign that for a sale on "Outrageously Bright Socks!". Bink

Show More

finds the brightest pair in the bargain bin, but Gollie proclaims, "the brightness of those socks pains me. I beg you not to purchase them." But Bink buys them anyways, and talks about how nice they are all the way home. Later when Bink asks Gollie to make pancakes, she says when "you remove your outrageous socks, I will make pancakes." Neither one wants to compromise, and they each spend the day alone, Bink with her socks, and Gollie with her pancakes. Until they simultaneously realize that they miss each other, and that nothing is quite as fun without the other one around.
Later in the second chapter of the story, Gollie puts a note on the door saying that she does not want to be disturbed by anyone, because she is climbing a mountain in the Andes. But Bink will not give up, and he continues to knock until she finally invites him in to join her at the peak of the mountain.
The third chapter is about a goldfish that Bink purchases at the local pet store, and begins bringing with him everywhere- the movies, to eat pancakes, and finally rollerskating. Unfortunately the rollerskating doesn't work out that well, as Bink trips on a rock and his beloved "Fred" goes flying though the air. Golly comes to Freds rescue by taking him as quickly as possible to the nearby pond and letting him go. On the edge of the pond the two friends manage move beyond the petty way in which they had been acting, and to cement their friendship forever.

Show Less

Utterly charming, this collection of stories about a best friends is funny and sweet. Great illustrations add to the girls' charm.

A great read for 1st-2nd graders.

Highly Recommended!

4Q, 4P: Funny and tender story of two friends and the humorous exploration of their connection despite their differences.

"Fish know nothing of longing."

This was absolutely delightful - Bink and Gollie are very different best friends who manage to love each other despite their very different approaches. This reminded me of the wit of Eloise, the parentless possibility of Pippi Longstocking, and the confident

Show More

intelligence of The Exiles. The text and pictures are equally stunning - I could see this as a lap book, or for confident early readers.

Show Less

This is a charming book that reminded me a lot of the Frog and Toad series. Like Frog and Toad, the book is made up of 'chapters' that are short stories. The two main characters are young girls who live very different lives. One is a free spirit and the other is more of an introvert. I have this

Show More

book in my classroom library.

Show Less

I thought this book was cute. I think that it has a lot of parts that young children would find funny. Because of the content in the book I think that it could also be a good choice for your older struggling readers because they may get the humor even more. This book would be great for studying

Show More

characters.

Show Less

Charming tale of two friends, different in size and personality. One is bigger and a bit more cerebral; the other is smaller and more adventurous. Told a story of friendship and compromise and understanding. Illustrations were cartoonish, mostly black and white using color for emphasis. I found it

Show More

touching and different. As an early reader book, it had several difficult and maybe new words which could be challenging but also good for discussion.

Show Less

What a fun early chapter book for young readers! Bink and Gollie are best friends, but total opposites. Cute illustrations help make this story come to life! Check it out.

This book is a great beginner/easy reader for children because it is such a humorous and engaging story while still teaching important life lessons. The characters of the book teach the reader to compromise, use their imagination, and many important aspects of friendship. All of these are extremely

Show More

valuable for children at this age.

Show Less

Bink and gollie is three stories that demonstrate the power of friendship and the maintenance it requires. These stories are age appropriate for 2- 3rd graders. To young girls who maintain their close friendship find that compromise and understanding are the glue that binds them. This is a grand

Show More

portrait of the perfect love hate relationship. Humor is used throughout the stories and the use of modern language creates classic. The illustrations are stylized and cute. The print is nice and large. This could be used in the classroom to examine the basis of friendship.

Show Less

This easy reader book is about two friends who go out and share simple thinks like rollerskating.
I like that the book shows the young readers that is good to compromise and the nice things of having healthy friendships.
It is simple enough that allows the students to built their readying skills.

Bink and Gollie best friends and wonderful companions. It is interesting how this two friends compromise in order to meet each others requirements.

This is an interesting story. It's a little hard to follow because each part is a completely different story about the same two characters. I think it is definitely for older readers, so I wouldn't read it to my current class. I did like how the two kids in the story are in color, but the

Show More

backgrounds are in black and white.

Show Less

I recommend this book as an easy reader for students who are transitioning to chapter books for 2-4th grade. This may be more suitable for girls because it is a book about two best girl friends and their quirky adventures. Tony Fucile's illustrations are interesting because he combines traditional

Show More

illustrations with those of a graphic novel. Although the book appears big the chapters are short in writing content. The chapters are clearly marked with the title and illustration. The girls go on adventures which are semi-realistic and quirky enough to be enjoyed by its young readers. This book uses some interesting vocabulary and can be used to teach the vocabulary. The book repeats ideas and vocabulary that students can pick up on and question why the author chose to use it.

Show Less

The book shares three different short stories about the friendship of Bink & Gollie. The stories go through adventure, jealousy, loss of friends, and compromising in situation. The vocabulary is well chosen for students in elementary. The illustrations are very appealing and go with the story being

Show More

told.

Show Less

Genre: Realistic Fiction- This is a great book about two friends who do everything together from eating breakfast, roller skating, shopping, and imaginary adventures up the Andes Mountains. These two young girls share a friendship that is similar to what a lot of young children experience when they

Show More

are young. This book also teaches us a lesson about what it means to be a good friend. They show us it takes compromise, understanding, and loyalty.
Characterization: Gollie is, in a way, the foil character compared to Bink. Granted both are main characters but we find that the two have opposite personalities that play off of each other. Gollie is older and wiser and Bink is younger and carefree. The two teach each other things that they wouldn't have been able to learn without the other. A great example of the foil is towards the end of the book Bink, in her young nature, carelessly makes a new best friend out of a fish, to her it isn't a big deal but Gollie is hurt. The two learn from this and find that they see things differently but are still friends.

Show Less

DiCamiilo, Kate & Alison McGhee. Illustrated by Tony Fucile. Bink and Gollie. Somerville, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press, 2010.

Characters: Bink; Gollie

Setting: Bink’s and Gollie’s hometown including the general store, a fish pet store, the local movie theater, and a pond near their house

Show More

Theme: friendship; compromise; acceptance

Genre: children’s realistic fiction

Golden Quote: “’The problem with Gollie,’ said Bink, is that’s it’s either Gollie’s way or the highway.’”

Summary: Two-roller skating best friends –one tiny, one tall – share three comical adventures involving bright sock, an impromptu trek to the Andes, and a most unlikely marvelous companion.

Audience: grade level- 3rd to 4th; age level: 8 and up

Curriculum ties: mathematics- short vs. tall (measure students in class and compare); social science- Gollie takes a trip depending on where her finger winds up on a globe of the world (geography); language arts- write about your best friend and the things you do together, there is a reference to pairs (do activity that involves students matching or finding pairs of objects), pretend you are a third character and write yourself in the story of Bink and Gollie – how would you put yourself into the story?, how would you change the dynamic of the story?

Awards: Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, 2011

Personal response: This book is so cute on so many different levels! Bink and Gollie are best friends that go on some pretty ordinary adventures, however, they turn them into extraordinary ones through their love and connection to one another. The illustrations are whimsical, vibrant and charming to go along with equally charming and quirky dialogue. While there are some complex vocabulary words, they are used in such a way that their meanings are explained through the context of the story. Bink and Gollie would be appropriate for 3rd grade students to read on their own, nonetheless it would be great as a read aloud for younger children. This book would be a wonderful choice for reluctant readers as well; not only for the story itself, but also for its format (a combination of picture book, beginning chapter book, and graphic novel all rolled into one).

Show Less

Kind of a graphic novel, kind of a beginning chapter book (although the vocabulary is NOT easy reader level). There is much to enjoy in the whimsical dialog between the two friends, but it is Tony Fucile's ("Let's Do Nothing") quirky and hilarious illustrations that make this book into something

Show More

special. Adults will enjoy poring over the details in the illustrations at least as much as the kids do, if not more.

Show Less

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Critiques: This early chapter book is realistic fiction because it presents three stories of adventurous activities of two best friends. The characters are realistic with qualities resembling a strong friendship and primary age perspective of real-life situations. The

Show More

setting resembles that of a typical neighborhood with a park, clothing store, and pond. All aspects of the book are relatable and plausible to a reader.
The plot of the three mini adventures presented in this book resemble a person against person plot as the two main characters, Gollie and Bink face various situations with different perspectives of the world. The opening of the book does not introduce the characters using the text, but makes the reader analyze the illustrations for understanding of the two different personalities of Gollie and Bink. Furthermore, the order of the adventures are random and do not flow into each other, but are very separate encounters of adventure. There is resolution at the end of the book with a closure to the last adventure on the pond, and this is also a good example of the person against person plot with Gollie proving to Bink that she has saved a fish's life.

Media: digital

Show Less

This is the story of two friends, Bink and Gollie. Each of them are quite individual, and they don't always agree, but in the end what matters most is their friendship and what they have in common.

Rather unusually for me, I've been sitting on this one for a week, unsure of how to review it. I've

Show More

always liked-but-not-loved Kate DiCamillo's books, and as I'm not entirely sure why there's just a smidgen of a miss, I was afraid I wouldn't quite be able to convey why this isn't a 4.5 - 5 star read for me. Then there's the fact that there are very few words. Though not a picture book, the story is told as much through illustrations as the wordsm which are primarily used to convey the characters' speech. I like how individual Bink and Gollie are in both looks and temperament, and I like the way the sort of disagreements that friends have is conveyed in a realistic way without coming across as patronizing to the children for whom these spats are very real and very important.

Show Less

Bink and Gollie are two best friends who have funny adventures as they deal with socks, goldfish, and trips to the Andes Mountains.

This book not quite a graphic novel but is very similar with pictures and captions. It is great for reluctant readers who rely on pictures to comprehend the story. The

Show More

book is ideal for grades 2-3.

Show Less