HANA IN THE TIME OF THE TULIPS

A tour de force for the artist, but a story that doesn’t quite hang together. Ibatoulline has immersed himself in the style of Rembrandt and other Dutch masters, so that his acrylic gouache paintings have their rich gold glow, and his smaller pen-and-ink pieces are a beautiful homage to Rembrandt’s vibrant line. But the tale, which attempts a view of 17th-century tulipomania from a child’s point of view, is odd. Young Hana sees that her father is so preoccupied with trading and selling the precious bulbs that he no longer pays attention when he kisses her goodnight. She asks Cook and Mama and Gardener how to cheer him, and they offer her sprigs of rosemary, daisies, and fireflies. But it’s family friend Rembrandt himself who gives Hana the idea to paint the tulip her father is so obsessed with, and he finds solace there even as his investments in the tulips disappear. Children (and adults) may not quite follow the story, since the resolution seems overly simple, but both will thrill to the beauty of the pictures and the tender concern of a child for her father. (author’s note) (Picture book. 7-10)