Darkly moody illustrations capture a daredevil’s successful stunt. In 1901, “short, plump, and fussy” Annie Edson Taylor is 62 years old. Her charm school folds, and she fears “the poorhouse, an unhappy place where old people without money or a family… live out their years.” Annie’s no thrill-seeker, just astoundingly matter-of-fact and audacious—so she decides to be the first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel. As Annie designs her own barrel, “with iron bands wrapped around it” and a leather belt and metal handles inside, Van Allsburg uses scale and angle for drama. Annie meticulously squints down an oak plank to choose the best one; a close-up of a broken egg oozing out of a can speaks volumes about Annie’s potential experience. The highly skilled black-and–antique-cream drawings have a bleak, unsettling vibe, matching first the danger of the feat and then Annie’s disappointment at the lack of financial profit, for this was to be her road to security. On tour, audiences are skeptical or bored to see that “the fearless ‘Queen of the Falls’ [is] a little old lady.” At the end, Annie claims contentment, but it’s hard to believe; still, daredevil fans will appreciate the triumphant stunt and the details of how it worked. An odd, unsettling meditation on fame. (author’s note, bibliography, list of barrel riders) (Informational picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: April 4, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-31581-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The legions of fans who over the years have enjoyed dePaola’s autobiographical picture books will welcome this longer gathering of reminiscences. Writing in an authentically childlike voice, he describes watching the new house his father was building go up despite a succession of disasters, from a brush fire to the hurricane of 1938. Meanwhile, he also introduces family, friends, and neighbors, adds Nana Fall River to his already well-known Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, remembers his first day of school (“ ‘ When do we learn to read?’ I asked. ‘Oh, we don’t learn how to read in kindergarten. We learn to read next year, in first grade.’ ‘Fine,’ I said. ‘I’ll be back next year.’ And I walked right out of school.”), recalls holidays, and explains his indignation when the plot of Disney’s “Snow White” doesn’t match the story he knows. Generously illustrated with vignettes and larger scenes, this cheery, well-knit narrative proves that an old dog can learn new tricks, and learn them surpassingly well. (Autobiography. 7-9)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-399-23246-X
Page Count: 58
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1999
Abigail Adams, wife and mother of American presidents, with a remarkable story of her own, gets a rather dull introduction to her life in Wallner's (Sergio and the Hurricane, 2000, etc.) picture-book biography. Wallner's text plods through Abigail's life, noting important dates and events, particularly the birth of all her children. Abigail supports her husband in his fight for independence at home, where she runs the family farm and manages the finances and her growing family. She also joins Adams in England when he is ambassador there. Later, she becomes the first president's wife to live in the White House. Abigail is shown as a strong woman, disappointed in her efforts to win a place for women and blacks in the new Constitution. Readers learn about Abigail's thoughts and personality as she matures from child to adult, from homemaker to public figure, but unfortunately we do not hear more than a few phrases in Abigail's own voice. Abigail, who is known through her many published letters, was a lively and interesting correspondent and little of that liveliness permeates this effort. The author's folkart-style illustrations depict a homely group of colonialists in pleasantly colorful detail. A timeline and bibliography would have been helpful to young researchers. This intelligent, early feminist and civil-rights advocate deserves better. (Biography. 8-10)
Pub Date: March 15, 2001
ISBN: 0-8234-1442-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2001
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