A beautifully designed, poetic historical picture book.
Reese chronicles a little-known trip that Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King took to India in this children’s picture book.
In 1959, the Kings traveled from Montgomery, Alabama, to India. Martin had long been inspired by the teachings of Gandhi and the nonviolent movement he led: “Gandhi’s teachings took root in Martin’s heart, blooming strong and bright like royal sunflowers!” For more than a month, the Kings traveled through India, hoping to learn more as they toured the land where Gandhi had made such a difference; they did not expect to be greeted with cheers and treated like celebrities. Prime Minister Nehru thanked them for their freedom fighting, and college students gathered to learn about their activism. Reese’s poetic text guides readers through the wonders of the journey. The digital illustrations are based on photographs, stylizing the images to soften the edges and give them a somewhat abstract feel. The result makes the journey seem almost fantastical, a moment of magical connection. While many of the original photographs are in black and white, Reese’s design work floods the pages with colors and patterns, always complementing the text without overpowering it. Quotes from Gandhi’s teachings are peppered throughout. This historic moment of joy and celebration offers an uplifting look at two nations striving for a better future.
A beautifully designed, poetic historical picture book.Pub Date: Jan. 25, 2024
ISBN: 9798218968786
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Bea and Jo Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
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