by Chris L. Demarest & illustrated by Chris L. Demarest ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2005
Demarest explores, through dramatic military-related illustrations, the International Communications Alphabet (ICA). When radios started to be used in combat, it soon became clear that letters alone might be misinterpreted, hence the substitution of words and the birth of the ICA (the Navy added their own bit of clarity with signal flags, also represented by Demarest). Here are our old friends Alpha Beta Charlie, but also Hotel and Juliet, Oscar, Romeo, and Victor, and not to forget Whiskey (clarity, sure, but also a touch of whimsy and mischief). Demarest avoids any jingoism, concentrating instead on the sheer energy of military situations, even their melodrama: check out the German shepherd on the K-9 patrol; the artwork clangs with vibrancy. He keeps the text to a minimum, offering just enough to support the spectacular art. Exciting stuff for kids in the military state of mind, not to mention a good workout for the memory. (Picture book. 6-10)
Pub Date: June 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-689-86928-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2005
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by Shana Corey ; illustrated by Red Nose Studio ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 8, 2016
Absolutely wonderful in every way.
A long-forgotten chapter in New York City history is brilliantly illuminated.
In mid-19th-century New York, horses and horse-drawn vehicles were the only means of transportation, and the din created by wheels as they rumbled on the cobblestones was deafening. The congestion at intersections threatened the lives of drivers and pedestrians alike. Many solutions were bandied about, but nothing was ever done. Enter Alfred Ely Beach, an admirer of “newfangled notions.” Working in secret, he created an underground train powered by an enormous fan in a pneumatic tube. He built a tunnel lined with brick and concrete and a sumptuously decorated waiting room for passenger comfort. It brought a curious public rushing to use it and became a great though short-lived success, ending when the corrupt politician Boss Tweed used his influence to kill the whole project. Here is science, history, suspense, secrecy, and skulduggery in action. Corey’s narrative is brisk, chatty, and highly descriptive, vividly presenting all the salient facts and making the events accessible and fascinating to modern readers. The incredibly inventive multimedia illustrations match the text perfectly and add detail, dimension, and pizazz. Located on the inside of the book jacket is a step-by-step guide to the creative process behind these remarkable illustrations.
Absolutely wonderful in every way. (author’s note, bibliography, Web resources) (Informational picture book. 6-10)Pub Date: March 8, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-375-87071-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
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by April Jones Prince & illustrated by François Roca ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 26, 2005
Strong rhythms and occasional full or partial rhymes give this account of P.T. Barnum’s 1884 elephant parade across the newly opened Brooklyn Bridge an incantatory tone. Catching a whiff of public concern about the new bridge’s sturdiness, Barnum seizes the moment: “’I will stage an event / that will calm every fear, erase every worry, / about that remarkable bridge. / My display will amuse, inform / and astound some. / Or else my name isn’t Barnum!’” Using a rich palette of glowing golds and browns, Roca imbues the pachyderms with a calm solidity, sending them ambling past equally solid-looking buildings and over a truly monumental bridge—which soars over a striped Big Top tent in the final scene. A stately rendition of the episode, less exuberant, but also less fictionalized, than Phil Bildner’s Twenty-One Elephants (2004), illustrated by LeUyen Pham. (author’s note, resource list) (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2005
ISBN: 0-618-44887-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2005
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by April Jones Prince ; illustrated by Christine Davenier
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