A beautifully crafted, uplifting meditation on the inner, personal dimensions of hope.
A self-styled “children’s book for adults” about finding contentment in the world.
Weill’s big, ornately produced debut opens with an elementary restatement of the core philosophical outlook of 18th-century Italian Jewish mystic Ramchal (Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto) about the essential oneness of all creation and how existence is a constant journey to re-attain the oneness of creation’s beginning. In bright, simple watercolors (one image per page, with plenty of white space), Weill follows a central visual character—a man in a suit and hat whose face is a blur—through a series of vignettes, some purely conceptual (walking up a graph of life events partitioned like a piece of modern art), others very concrete (waiting at train stations, sitting at the seaside, etc.), while the narrative—generally one line per illustration—elaborates on Weill’s concept of how individuals find peace through introspection: “Well-being is generated not from the outside but from inside.” Each of the illustrations suggests a separate tale, and this fits neatly with Weill’s idea that each person’s life journey is essentially a collection of such tales. “We organize our circumstances into stories,” he writes, “stories we pick up along the way.” Through darker imagery (including one image of Auschwitz and another of the 9/11 attack), the author references life’s obstacles, and Weill contends that all such obstacles can be overcome with inner resources: “When we lose touch with well-being, joy seems to depend on circumstances, on what happens outside of us.” Introspection continues to be the key: “When we become aware of our own thinking,” he writes, “we awaken.” The book’s simplicity of insight is well-matched by its impressive production quality; the pages are thick and heavy, meant to convey the impression of timeless wisdom. As with most modern books on such weighty themes, Weill’s narration more often than not resorts to vague generalities to move its lessons forward. Readers may feel encouraged to read their own life experiences into these stark images, using Weill’s paintings like spiritual Rorschach blots. What wisdom or reassurance they draw from such an exercise will depend on what they put into it.
A beautifully crafted, uplifting meditation on the inner, personal dimensions of hope.Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0985800307
Page Count: 216
Publisher: Jean-Pierre Weill Studios
Review Posted Online: Aug. 23, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.
Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Plum Street Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.
In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.
In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 978-1591940173
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Townsend Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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