The story of Lewis and Clark's 1804 exploration west of the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean abounds with elements relevant to our own time. Chronicling the plants and animals they saw, Lewis and Clark made among the first ecological observations of the land. They were white men encountering Native Americans and beginning- -albeit unknowingly—a difficult, deceit-ridden relationship that continues to this day. While the picture-book format and target reading level limit Kroll (By the Dawn's Early Light, p. 69, etc.) from expounding on his story in any great detail, he might have at least alluded to his subjects' wider significance. Instead, his delivery of Lewis and Clark's journey is flat, monochromatic, and stinting on details about which kids will wonder: ``In the event they ran out of food, [Lewis] had brought a thick, gooey `portable soup.' '' Neat name, what was in it? ``The Corps spent four tense days with [the Teton Sioux].'' Well, what happened? Similarly undynamic are the poses and facial expressions in Williams's oils: Even in action scenes—such as when the men haul their canoes through rapids—the figures look stiff and blank, with only a bit lip driving the idea of exertion home. This is a rich subject, but get a good encyclopedia entry and some reference-book art and create your own, more compelling treatment for your kids. (Nonfiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1994
ISBN: 0-8234-1034-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1994
A pleasing new picture book looks at George Washington’s career through an agricultural lens. Sprinkling excerpts from his letters and diaries throughout to allow its subject to speak in his own voice, the narrative makes a convincing case for Washington’s place as the nation’s First Farmer. His innovations, in addition to applying the scientific method to compost, include a combination plow-tiller-harrow, the popularization of the mule and a two-level barn that put horses to work at threshing grain in any weather. Thomas integrates Washington’s military and political adventures into her account, making clear that it was his frustration as a farmer that caused him to join the revolutionary cause. Lane’s oil illustrations, while sometimes stiff, appropriately portray a man who was happiest when working the land. Backmatter includes a timeline, author’s notes on both Mount Vernon and Washington the slaveholder, resources for further exploration and a bibliography. (Picture book/biography. 8-12)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-59078-460-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Calkins Creek/Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The author of Cod’s Tale (2001) again demonstrates a dab hand at recasting his adult work for a younger audience. Here the topic is salt, “the only rock eaten by human beings,” and, as he engrossingly demonstrates, “the object of wars and revolutions” throughout recorded history and before. Between his opening disquisition on its chemical composition and a closing timeline, he explores salt’s sources and methods of extraction, its worldwide economic influences from prehistoric domestication of animals to Gandhi’s Salt March, its many uses as a preservative and industrial product, its culinary and even, as the source for words like “salary” and “salad,” its linguistic history. Along with lucid maps and diagrams, Schindler supplies detailed, sometimes fanciful scenes to go along, finishing with a view of young folk chowing down on orders of French fries as ghostly figures from history look on. Some of Kurlansky’s claims are exaggerated (the Erie and other canals were built to transport more than just salt, for instance), and there are no leads to further resources, but this salutary (in more ways than one) micro-history will have young readers lifting their shakers in tribute. (Picture book/nonfiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-399-23998-7
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2006
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