Paintings, sculpture and photographs depicting American scenes and people and representing artists and styles from the 18th century to the present are the focus of Raczka’s latest lesson in exposing young minds to viewing and understanding art. Each work appears on a bright blue or red star-studded background accompanied by a brief sentence in large white letters. The simplest ideas are the most successful. Thomas Hart Benton’s Cradling Wheat, captioned “America is hard work,” is straightforward and easily understood. But some of the selected works are more ambiguous and the concepts assigned to them might be too abstract and sophisticated for the intended audience of very young readers. Mark Tansey’s Action Painting II (of pleine-air artists painting a shuttle launch) is designated “freedom”, and Stuart Davis’s cubist The Mellow Pad is “jazz.” Thumbnails in the backmatter offer more detailed information about each piece of art and justify the interpretations. The eye-catching format is brilliant, but this is an experience best shared by older elementary readers, with an adult to lead the discussion. (Picture book. 6-10)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-58013-881-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: First Avenue/Millbrook
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2008
At ``Step 2'' in the useful ``Step into Reading'' series: an admirably clear, well-balanced presentation that centers on wolves' habits and pack structure. Milton also addresses their endangered status, as well as their place in fantasy, folklore, and the popular imagination. Attractive realistic watercolors on almost every page. Top-notch: concise, but remarkably extensive in its coverage. A real bargain. (Nonfiction/Easy reader. 6-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-679-91052-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1992
BOOK REVIEW
Gooney Bird Greene (with a silent E) is not your average second grader. She arrives in Mrs. Pidgeon’s class announcing: “I’m your new student and I just moved here from China. I want a desk right smack in the middle of the room, because I like to be right smack in the middle of everything.” Everything about her is unusual and mysterious—her clothes, hairstyles, even her lunches. Since the second graders have never met anyone like Gooney Bird, they want to hear more about her. Mrs. Pidgeon has been talking to the class about what makes a good story, so it stands to reason that Gooney will get her chance. She tells a series of stories that explain her name, how she came from China on a flying carpet, how she got diamond earrings at the prince’s palace, and why she was late for school (because she was directing a symphony orchestra). And her stories are “absolutely true.” Actually, they are explainable and mesh precisely with the teacher’s lesson, more important, they are a clever device that exemplify the elements of good storytelling and writing and also demonstrate how everyone can turn everyday events into stories. Savvy teachers should take note and add this to their shelf of “how a story is made” titles. Gooney Bird’s stories are printed in larger type than the narrative and the black-and-white drawings add the right touch of sauciness (only the cover is in color). A hybrid of Harriet, Blossom, and Anastasia, irrepressible Gooney Bird is that rare bird in children’s fiction: one that instantly becomes an amusing and popular favorite. (Fiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-618-23848-4
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2002
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