If oceans could talk and shores could speak, according to Chambers, they would tell a story of Joseph CinquÇ and his freedom fight aboard the Spanish slave ship Amistad. This gripping, fictionalized picture-book account outlines a shameful slice of American history that some children will know from the recent film. In the days when owning slaves was legal but the stealing and trafficking of human cargo was not, a band of African prisoners were herded onto the Amistad. Despite all attempts to break their spirit and render them chattel, a struggle on the high seas ensued, and the leader, CinquÇ, overtook his captors. Complications landed the Africans in a Connecticut prison, sparking an international incident; the early American justice system did not fail the “Black Prince” and his fellow freedom fighters. The hero’s journey is told in straightforward narration, bracketed by exalted musings about freedom. In Lee’s first picture book, the strong lines and chiseled faces against dark backgrounds transmit the emotional trajectory of the story, taking it from the pages of history to a near-mythic tragedy. The hopeful outcome is succinctly communicated by the closing page’s illustration of empty, open shackles. (Picture book. 8-11)
Pub Date: March 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-15-201803-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Floca (The Frightful Story of Harry Walfish, 1997, etc.) offers a great explication of the small trucks that airline passengers see scurrying around jets on the runways. In brightly painted illustrations and simple descriptions, he introduces each vehicle, explains what it does, and shows it in action, e.g., the truck called the baggage conveyor is shown hoisting suitcases into the belly of the plane. All five trucks’ duties point to a big finale when the plane takes off. Given preschoolers’ well-documented fascination with heavy machinery, this book will strike a chord with young air travelers, and answer the questions of older travelers as well. (Picture book. 6-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7894-2561-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: DK Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1999
The leap-at-you color and elegantly stylized illustrations, resembling airbrushed linoleum-cuts, give this book an instant allure; the story—a noble tale of character and social leveling, mock drama and high mirth—more than meets the expectations aroused by that first impression. A retired pirate, out on a stroll in Central Park, is prompted by his memories to build a scale-model replica of his pirate ship and launch it in the park’s sailboat pond. All is shipshape until an old queen arrives and has her servant launch an outsized liner—the S.S. Uppity Duchess. The liner barges about, swamping the other boats in the pond, but at the pirate’s suggestion to slow her vessel, the queen opens fire on his ship. He responds with a broadside of his own and a great battle ensues; tiny cannonballs zing this way and that, people take cover, dogs and young children run riot, taxis on Fifth Avenue come to a halt. Then the queen calls a truce; she’s in need of a nap, and from that need—which the pirate shares—flows the notes of reconciliation. “Peace and tranquility once again reigned at the pond. Sails were set, dogs recaptured, and gentle laughter returned to the soft summer air of New York City.” Priest tells the story with dash and verve, whether in a turn of phrase or a line of art; it not only features a contemporary city with one of its great pleasures—the park—in full flower, but a realm in which the wish for a little rest outweighs the wages of war. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-395-90505-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
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