Beautifully executed; a visual and narrative treat.
A lushly illustrated biography of the French painter Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun (1755-1842).
Relative to most women of her time, Vigée Le Brun enjoyed a remarkably unrestricted life. As a child she was taught by her father, a portrait painter who recognized her talent early on. Later she was mentored by landscape artist Joseph Vernet, achieving success while still in her teens. Drawing from numerous academic sources, as well as Vigée Le Brun’s own memoir (published in several volumes several years before she died), Pomeroy details the painter’s successes as well as her tribulations. Although she had the honor of being admitted to the prestigious Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture, she had to flee Paris with her young daughter during the French Revolution: Her political views and association with her patron Marie Antoinette put her on the revolutionaries’ list of those stripped of their citizenship. Her husband, Pierre, who supported the revolution, remained behind and attempted to salvage her reputation. Travelling and painting to support herself, Vigée Le Brun was much sought after by the aristocracy of several countries, including Russian empress Catherine the Great. The book’s pleasing design includes numerous reproductions of Vigée Le Brun’s art and sidebars explaining relevant events and people (including Black painters from the French Caribbean colonies). Notably, the author furnishes information on the noblewomen whose portraits Le Brun painted, helping readers answer the question, “Where were the women?”
Beautifully executed; a visual and narrative treat. (note to readers, cast of characters, endnotes, sources, image credits, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: July 29, 2025
ISBN: 9781947440104
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Getty Publications
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: today
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change.
Testa’s connection to and respect for nature compelled her to begin championing animal causes at the age of 10, and this desire to have an impact later propelled her to dedicate her life to fighting plastic pollution. Starting with the history of plastic and how it’s produced, Testa acknowledges the benefits of plastics for humanity but also the many ways it harms our planet. Instead of relying on recycling—which is both insufficient and ineffective—she urges readers to follow two additional R’s: “refuse” and “raise awareness.” Readers are encouraged to do their part, starting with small things like refusing to use plastic straws and water bottles and eventually working up to using their voices to influence business and policy change. In the process, she highlights other youth advocates working toward the same cause. Short chapters include personal examples, such as observations of plastic pollution in Mauritius, her maternal grandparents’ birthplace. Testa makes her case not only against plastic pollution, but also for the work she’s done, resulting in something of a college-admissions–essay tone. Nevertheless, the first-person accounts paired with science will have an impact on readers. Unfortunately, no sources are cited and the lack of backmatter is a missed opportunity.
Brief yet inspirational, this story will galvanize youth to use their voices for change. (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22333-8
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
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