The informational text proves why Daniel Boone is synonymous with the pioneer spirit.
Adler, collaborating with his son, expands his extensive repertoire of picture-book biographies of famous Americans with this worthy addition featuring Daniel Boone.
Beginning with the frontiersman’s birth in 1734 to Quakers who left England and settled in Pennsylvania for religious freedom, the straightforward text follows the same format as the authors’ previous biographies. Sprinkled with documented quotes, double-page spreads introduce specific events in Boone’s life. Descriptions of his curiosity in childhood, his job as a wagon driver for the British during the French and Indian War, and his constant search for better hunting grounds lead up to his establishment of a settlement in Kentucky (then still part of Virginia) and blazing the route from Virginia to Kentucky that came to be called the Wilderness Trail. The authors heighten the perils by including several Shawnee Indian attacks Boone and his family encountered, but they do not balance the topic by indicating why the Native Americans felt threatened. Complemented by realistic illustrations that depict the lushness of unexplored land and an attention to the details of soldiers’, settlers’ and Native Americans’ clothing and homes, the biography is still a good source for browsing and school reports. Appended lists of important dates and related websites, as well as authors’ notes, will assist with the latter.
The informational text proves why Daniel Boone is synonymous with the pioneer spirit. (Picture book/biography. 4-8)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2748-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: June 25, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2013
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BOOK REVIEW
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A lyrical coming-of-age story in picture-book form that begs to be shared.
Former Poet Laureate Herrera encourages his young readers to imagine all they might be in his new picture book.
Herrera’s free verse tells his own story, starting as a young boy who loves the plants and animals he finds outdoors in the California fields and is then thrust into the barren, concrete city. In the city he begins to learn to read and write, learning English and discovering a love for words and the way ink flows “like tiny rivers” across the page as he applies pen to paper. Words soon become sentences, poems, lyrics, and a means of escape. This love of the word ultimately leads him to make writing his vocation and to become the first Chicano Poet Laureate of the United States, an honor Herrera received in 2015. Through this story of hardship to success, expressed in a series of conditional statements that all begin “If I,” Herrera implores his readers to “imagine what you could do.” Castillo’s ink and foam monoprint illustrations are a tender accompaniment to Herrera’s verse, the black lines of her illustrations flowing across the page in rhythm with the author’s poetry. Together this makes for a charming read-aloud for groups or a child snuggled in a lap.
A lyrical coming-of-age story in picture-book form that begs to be shared. (Picture book/memoir. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9052-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Heartening.
One determined man brings two villages together with a hammer, chisel, and an iron will.
Deep in the heart of India, a mighty mountain separates two villages. Manjhi lives on one side, where nothing grows. On the other, rice and wheat flourish. The people there are affluent, while Manjhi’s village struggles with hunger. Manjhi climbs to the top of the mountain to ponder this problem. When he throws a stone, it triggers a sprinkle of powder, which gives him an idea. Manjhi trades his trio of goats for a hammer and chisel. Hurrying back to the top of the mountain, he positions the chisel and strikes it with the hammer. Powdered rock and tiny chips spray. He continues until he’s exhausted, but he’s also filled with hope. Even though people tell him he’s “crazy,” day after day Manjhi returns to the mountain. After a year, Majhi is a little stronger, and the hole he has made a little deeper. He perseveres and, when he returns to his task each day, notices that others have continued his work. It takes 22 years, but Manjhi lives to see the day that two villages become one, sharing water, hopes, and dreams. Churnin’s prose has an elegance appropriate for her inspiring tale, which is based on a true story. Popovich’s double-page illustrations use a warm palette and are nicely composed.
Heartening. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-939547-34-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Creston
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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