by David Wisniewski & illustrated by David Wisniewski ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 18, 1996
A fact-filled final note concludes this mesmerizing book.
The much honored cut-paper master (Sundiata, 1992, etc.) turns his attention to a retelling of the story of the Golem, created by a chief rabbi, Judah Loew, to defend the Jews against the "Blood Lie" (that Jews were mixing the blood of Christian children with the flour and water of matzoh) of 16th-century Prague.
Like Rogasky's book (see review, above), Wisniewski's exposes the slander that was embraced and widely promulgated during the Holocaust years. Loew's Golem—a sort of simple yet powerful giant made of clay with the Hebrew word emet (truth) on his forehead—is named Joseph and charged to "guard the ghetto at night and catch those planting false evidence of the Blood Lie ... and bring them unharmed to the authorities." In Wisniewski's story, the Golem turns back the rampaging masses who want to destroy the Jews of Prague and is eventually returned to the clay from which he sprang. The cut-paper collages are exquisitely produced and exceedingly dramatic. There is menace and majesty in Wisniewski's use of color, and he finds atmosphere and terror in a scissor's stroke.
A fact-filled final note concludes this mesmerizing book. (Picture book/folklore. 6-10)Pub Date: Oct. 18, 1996
ISBN: 978-0-395-72618-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1996
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by Joyce Milton & illustrated by Larry Schwinger ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1992
At ``Step 2'' in the useful ``Step into Reading'' series: an admirably clear, well-balanced presentation that centers on wolves' habits and pack structure. Milton also addresses their endangered status, as well as their place in fantasy, folklore, and the popular imagination. Attractive realistic watercolors on almost every page. Top-notch: concise, but remarkably extensive in its coverage. A real bargain. (Nonfiction/Easy reader. 6-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-679-91052-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1992
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by Joyce Milton ; illustrated by Franco Tempesta
by Meredith Hooper & illustrated by Bee Willey ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2000
Trickling, bubbling, swirling, rushing, a river flows down from its mountain beginnings, past peaceful country and bustling city on its way to the sea. Hooper (The Drop in My Drink, 1998, etc.) artfully evokes the water’s changing character as it transforms from “milky-cold / rattling-bold” to a wide, slow “sliding past mudflats / looping through marshes” to the end of its journey. Willey, best known for illustrating Geraldine McCaughrean’s spectacular folk-tale collections, contributes finely detailed scenes crafted in shimmering, intricate blues and greens, capturing mountain’s chill, the bucolic serenity of passing pastures, and a sense of mystery in the water’s shadowy depths. Though Hooper refers to “the cans and cartons / and bits of old wood” being swept along, there’s no direct conservation agenda here (for that, see Debby Atwell’s River, 1999), just appreciation for the river’s beauty and being. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: June 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-7636-0792-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
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