This affectionate, glowing collection will be hard to resist.
North to south, east to west, across mountain, valley, ocean and desert, California's flora and fauna illustrate adapted Aesopian fables.
Hansen brilliantly transposes the ancient tales to contemporary and historical settings artistically rendered in bright, finely detailed transparent watercolors. The Hollywood sign and a prospector running from a grizzly bear slide easily into the tales of old with wit and humor. In keeping with the fable tradition, they close with a moral. In "The Fox and the Grapes"––how very Californian—the fox decides that "[i]t's easy to find fault with what you cannot have." A full-page illustration faces text, one fable per opening. Hansen's introduction gives a biography of Aesop, and the "Fabulous Facts" section provides greater details about flora, fauna and settings, along with suggestions to young readers for specific things to look for in each picture. The tales themselves read aloud easily, wry textual details complementing the illustrations’ humor. It is an imaginative and creative reworking in text and art—a gift not only for Californians, but for others far beyond its borders. From this golden gift, Heydey may perhaps consider releasing the art in poster sets.
This affectionate, glowing collection will be hard to resist. (Fables. 4-8)Pub Date: March 15, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-59714-235-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Heyday
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
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
An invitation to wonder, imagine and look at everything (humans included) in a new way.
A young boy sees things a little differently than others.
Noah can see patterns in the dust when it sparkles in the sunlight. And if he puts his nose to the ground, he can smell the “green tang of the ants in the grass.” His most favorite thing of all, however, is to read. Noah has endless curiosity about how and why things work. Books open the door to those answers. But there is one question the books do not explain. When the wind comes whistling by, where does it go? Noah decides to find out. In a chase that has a slight element of danger—wind, after all, is unpredictable—Noah runs down streets, across bridges, near a highway, until the wind lifts him off his feet. Cowman’s gusty wisps show each stream of air turning a different jewel tone, swirling all around. The ribbons gently bring Noah home, setting him down under the same thinking tree where he began. Did it really happen? Worthington’s sensitive exploration leaves readers with their own set of questions and perhaps gratitude for all types of perspective. An author’s note mentions children on the autism spectrum but widens to include all who feel a little different.
An invitation to wonder, imagine and look at everything (humans included) in a new way. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 14, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-60554-356-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Redleaf Lane
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2015
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