An illustrated synopsis of the genesis and basic ideas of each of the world's major religions, as well as of some minor ones. Among the back matter is a list of sacred books, another of major festivals, and an interesting compilation of the various renderings of the Golden Rule, a form of which exists in almost all systems of belief. Betsy Maestro (with Giulio Maestro, The Discovery of the Americas, 1991, etc.) begins carefully, earnestly preaching the importance of diversity and balance, and taking for granted that religions are not handed down by deities but evolve from a people's own need to find meaning in life. She gallops through primitive religions, and hits her stride when she begins telling about the actual beliefs and histories of various cultures, beginning with the Chinese. Given the space limitations of the picture-book format, these are elegant and precise pieces. Giulio Maestro's beautiful illustrations are done in an array of styles, often reflecting the motifs and palettes of the culture under discussion. Most children will want to know more, but there is no bibliography nor list of further reading. Still, this is, in many ways, a revelatory work and a provocative introduction to a complicated subject. (index) (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-11)
Pub Date: Aug. 16, 1996
ISBN: 0-395-62364-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1996
This book of seasonal prayers, inspired by Saint Francis of Assisi’s “Canticle of Brother Sun,” and also indebted to Gaelic scholar Alexander Carmichel’s work, can be summed up by a portion of the prayer for November: “Contained in every/season’s end:/the blessing to begin again.” Springtime’s “Sing praise” gives way to summer’s “Rejoice!” and then to harvest time’s “Give Thanks” before winter’s “Be Blest” appears in the encircled prayer that faces each month’s watercolor illustration. The realistic paintings reflect the annual cycle, becoming almost iconographic in the evidence in each of the gifts of the season. These are “God’s good gifts” that in January, for example, are the seeds shaken from dead plants and weeds and the leaf buds on barren branches. The puzzle of the cycle of life springing from death moves on many levels; also appearing in January are predator (fox) and prey (deer). The simple yet sturdy spirituality informing this book will assure its place in both individual and institutional collections that have room for religious titles. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-80546-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1999
While Josephine Poole and Angela Barrett’s Joan of Arc (1998) focused on Joan as a saint, this spirited but reverent telling emphasizes Joan as a hero. In the little village of DomrÇmy, Joan did not learn to read or write, but she listened to stories of the saints’ great deeds, worked with her parents, and aided the sick. When St. Michael the Archangel first appeared to her in a great light, she was 13; he told her she would save France, and the people supported her, outfitting her with horse and armor, and a white banner with the golden lilies that symbolized the French king. All the highlights of Joan’s story are elegantly recounted here: her recognition of the king hidden in the crowd, her victory at OrlÇans, Charles’s coronation, her capture, abandonment, trial, and death by burning at the stake. Rayevsky’s drypoint and etching illustrations use the muted colors and sepia backgrounds of old prints; the simple, sinuous line and stylized faces are particularly evocative. His visual trope of a flowerlike flame in the fireplace of Joan’s home is startlingly recreated in the final image of Joan at the stake. (Picture book/biography. 6-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1999
ISBN: 0-8234-1424-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1999
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