Côté’s illustrations catch the haunting tone of Tennyson’s Arthurian lyric, while adding several original touches. Weaving “a magic web of colours gay,” the Lady lives in happy isolation in a tower until she catches a glimpse of Lancelot—activating a curse that sends her lifeless body drifting downriver to Camelot. In the sketchy, modernist art, medieval passersby mix with more contemporary ones on the road below Shalott, traveling toward Camelot’s high-rise skyline by horse or automobile. And Lancelot cuts a stylish figure, wearing a long duster rather than armor, and goggles pushed up on a plumed hat. Côté also adds a brighter ending: After Lancelot’s closing observation that, even in death, “she has a lovely face,” a small figure rises on butterfly wings over the city. A classic poem, in an unconventional but sensitive and suitable setting. Includes long notes on poem and illustrator. (Poetry. 10-15)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2005
ISBN: 1-55337-874-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2005
Among the best storytellers writing history today, Blumberg (The Remarkable Voyages of Captain Cook, 1991, etc.) presents one of the most ambitious construction projects in modern times as a colorful tale of relentless cupidity and heroic, roughneck effort. Apparently everyone except teamsters, riverboat operators, and Native Americans agreed that a transcontinental railroad was a good idea, but sorting out the politics of its route and financing (plus the burden of a civil war) took five times as long as its actual construction. Blumberg introduces the main players, from Leland Stanford and other ruthless capitalists to the visionary engineers and tough foremen—especially Theodore Judah, Grenville Dodge and James Strobridge—who saw the work through; she pays tribute to the thousands of Chinese immigrants who carved a path through the Sierra Nevadas, paints a vivid picture of the wild life in Laramie and other railroad towns, and brings the story to a conclusion with the famous meeting at Promontory Summit, Utah (not miles-distant Promontory Point, as many accounts have it), where ceremonies ``neither dignified nor inspirational'' nonetheless touched off a national celebration. A generous selection of contemporary black-and-white photographs and enlarged engravings capture the rowdy town and work-camp life while underscoring the sheer number of people involved in the enterprise. Since Blumberg touches only on the specifics of railroad construction, working conditions, various financial scandals, and railroad lore and legend, pair this with Leonard Everett Fisher's Tracks Across America (1992) for a more complete picture. (map, notes, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 11-14)
Pub Date: May 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-7922-2715-8
Page Count: 160
Publisher: National Geographic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This superficial biography has been pasted together mostly from magazine articles, and—lacking vigor and immediacy—it shows. The facts of Turner’s childhood are sketched out, including his education at boarding and military schools, and, rather baldly, his father’s child-rearing philosophy: “Ed wanted Ted to be obedient, but insecure, so he would grow up to be ambitious and work for everything he received.” When his father killed himself, Turner took over his billboard business and began creating an empire. His sometimes riotous behavior, romantic liaisons, and mental-health treatment are covered here, along with his roller-coaster career, and Byman provides a good overall look at the risk involved and the ingenuity displayed as Turner bought radio stations and a baseball team, created CNN, and attempted to purchase CBS, among many other entrepreneurial moves. His social evolution is related in a detached manner, often with a minimum of useful context, e.g., “He put up warning signs from the Ku Klux Klan on the doors of the few black students in the dorm. His intention was to be funny. But . . . other students did not share his sense of humor.” A list of Time-Warner’s holdings is an odd addition to the backmatter. (b&w photos, chronology, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12-14)
Pub Date: April 2, 1998
ISBN: 1-883846-25-0
Page Count: 112
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1998
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