Williams applies her trademark cartoony style to 11 tales from the Old Testament, rendered in two- or four-page spreads. The illustrations are characteristically busy, tiny panels sharing space with larger tableaux, all surrounded by a Greek chorus of angels (with a lumpy-headed serpent who twines itself around the frame and provides the antiphon). The effect can be hilarious: 40 itty-bitty panels depict Noah’s Ark bobbing on the waves (and receiving an occasional assist from God), while dialogue from within reveals its passengers’ increasing distaste for their hay rations (“Yuck!”). God Himself is depicted as a bald, jolly-looking olive-skinned gentleman with a beard, and while the other characters’ dialogue is colloquial and even at times irreverent, His dialogue is quoted from the New International Version of the Bible. No collection of stories can convey the grand narrative sweep of the Old Testament, and this is no exception. As an unusual and very funny interpretation of some of the key stories in the Western tradition, this offering works beautifully; as an entree to the Bible itself, it is less successful. (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-12)
Pub Date: March 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-7636-2211-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2004
What we know of the complicated life of this early Christian missionary is related through several books in the New Testament. In this biographical compilation, the author uses all the various books of the Bible related to Paul to create a linear narrative of his life, presented in short chapters with abundant spot and full-page illustrations rendered by Cockroft in a muted but pleasing style. A map on the front endpapers traces Paul’s journeys throughout the Middle East and on to Greece and Italy. A final page provides some key facts about Paul, but this chart should have been placed at the front of the volume to aid readers’ understanding of the main text. Paul’s arguably most famous words—from I Corinthians—serve as the conclusion to the final chapter, but there is no clear reference to the specific chapter and verse. The most glaring omission is the lack of a chart of the Bible books that are attributed to Paul; only a vague reference indicates that Paul’s letters are found in the New Testament. (Religion. 8-12)
Pub Date: March 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8254-7906-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: HarperBlessings/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
The artistic starting point for the luminous illustrations in Spirin’s latest exploration of biblical texts is a large tempera painting incorporating scenes from the key events in the life of Christ. This painting, reproduced on a single page at the front of the oversized volume, uses an architectural arrangement with each scene serving as a room or floor of a castle-like structure. The ensuing full-page illustrations are excerpted from the larger painting, as are smaller vignettes of key characters framed within arches on the cover and endpapers. Each illustration is presented with a different format of surrounding pillars, archways or stonework relating to the architectural theme. The elegant paintings are filled with exquisite details in costumes and settings, accented with his signature use of golden highlights that convey a Renaissance flavor. While both the overall design and the illustrations are artistically stunning, the use of the King James Version of the biblical texts and the formal composition of the illustrations are not child-friendly, making this of most interest to adult collectors. (Religion/picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-7614-5630-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish
Review Posted Online: June 20, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2010
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