Children who want to know more (i.e., anything) about Delaunay’s life or artistic context will have to look elsewhere, but...
This small but fulsome tribute to the underrecognized artist/designer pairs pop-up versions of many of her semiabstract works with fanciful interpretive notes.
Adding a third dimension to the strong shapes and loud colors that characterize Sonia Delaunay’s compositions suits them nicely. Examples range from a gatefolded array of tiny figures sporting costume designs to large assemblages of interlocking circles or other geometric shapes. These float over plain backgrounds on which, often, the cutouts that make up the next spread’s offering have been left exposed. Most of the selections bear indeterminate labels, but Grater (“inspired” by the French edition’s original text) offers comments that provide playful images—as alternatives for the wriggly lines of Untitled, 1948, for instance: “Harsh moustaches and slithering snakes? That is simply frightful! / Sticky worms and ocean waves? That’s much more delightful!” (Her commentary also drifts arbitrarily in and out of forced rhyme.) Possibly more usefully, on two spreads Lo Monaco places smaller pop-ups of later variations as invitations to notice and ruminate on the effects of similarities and differences.
Children who want to know more (i.e., anything) about Delaunay’s life or artistic context will have to look elsewhere, but this bonbon should leave a taste for further enquiry. (thumbnail index includes media and locations) (Pop-up art book. 6-10)Pub Date: March 31, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-84976-334-9
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Tate/Abrams
Review Posted Online: March 31, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Trisha is ready to start at a new school, where no one will know she has dyslexia. At first, she is heartbroken to be in Miss Peterson’s special-ed class, aka, “the junkyard.” But Miss Peterson treats the children as anything but junk, showing them that everyone has a unique talent. Polacco’s trademark style is fully present here; her sensitively drawn alter ego shines with depth of feeling. When bullying occurs, Miss Peterson proves her students are worthwhile by planning a junkyard field trip, where they find valuable objects to be used in exciting ways. Trisha’s group repairs a plane, and the class buys an engine for it. Then a beloved class member dies, and the children must find a way to honor him. While the plot meanders somewhat, the characters are appealing, believable and provide a fine portrayal of a truly special class. Children will be drawn in by the story’s warmth and gentle humor and will leave with a spark of inspiration, an appreciation of individual differences and a firm anti-bullying message, all underscored by the author’s note that concludes the book. (Picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: July 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-399-25078-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2010
Best for readers who have clearly indicated they would like to take their writing efforts to the next level.
A young white girl writes and illustrates a story, which is critiqued by the narrator as it is created.
The girl begins her story by drawing a Hero. Then she thinks maybe a Heroine would be better. Then she decides both will work. She places them in “a good town, filled with good people, called our Setting.” The narrator, an unseen editor who lurks over the artist’s shoulder, tells the storyteller she needs to put in some Conflict, make the Evil Overlord scarier, and give it better action. This tongue-in-cheek way of delivering the rules of creative writing is clever, and paired with Le Huche’s earnest, childlike illustrations, it seems to be aimed at giving helpful direction to aspiring young creators (although the illustrations are not critiqued). But the question needs to be asked: do very young writers really need to know the rules of writing as determined by adults? While the story appears to be about helping young readers learn writing—there is “A Friendly List of Words Used in this Book” at the end with such words as “protagonist” and “antagonist” (glossed as “Hero and Heroine” and “Evil Overlord,” respectively)—it also has a decidedly unhelpful whiff of judgment. Rules, the text seems to say, must be followed for the story to be a Good one. Ouch.
Best for readers who have clearly indicated they would like to take their writing efforts to the next level. (Picture book. 6-10)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-2935-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2017
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