by Esther Hautzig & illustrated by Beth Peck ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 20, 2002
When Uncle Benjamin writes a letter to Sara’s mother, his sister, in Vilna inviting her and Grandmother Hanna to the 1939 World’s Fair in New York, he requests that Sara’s mother bring with her a photograph of their mother. But Sara has never seen the photograph mentioned in the letter. After searching through her mother’s things, she pays a visit to her Great-aunt Lisa who bluntly tells her that Grandmother Hanna is not really the mother of Sara’s mother, but her stepmother. Sara’s “real” grandmother, who was Great-aunt Lisa’s sister, died giving birth to Uncle Benjamin. Initially angry with Great-aunt Lisa for revealing the secret, Sara forgives her when she makes a gift to Grandmother Hanna of the brooch worn by her sister in the photograph. This bland plot fails to generate much interest for young readers and no mention is made of the imminent danger to Poland’s Jews in 1939. Black-and-white drawings lend an antique look to the text, but do little to attract an audience. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2002
ISBN: 0-374-35920-2
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Frances Foster/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2002
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by Esther Hautzig & illustrated by Donna Diamond
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by Esther Hautzig & photographed by David Hautzig
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by Shirley Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1999
From Hughes (Enchantment in the Garden, 1997, etc.), a WWII story with big ambitions—many of them realized’set out in the pages of an unusually long picture book. Lenny Levi lives in London with his mother during the Blitz, cherishing the letters from his father at the front, and the medal of the lion and the unicorn his father gave him. When Lenny is evacuated to the country, he finds himself at a huge old manor with three little girls, the lady of the house, and a few servants. He is lonely, teased at school and at home for not eating bacon and for bedwetting, but makes a friend of the young man with one leg he meets in the secret garden on the estate. The garden, thick with roses, also holds a beautiful statue of a unicorn like the one on his medal. As Lenny’s loneliness and fear spiral out of control, a night vision of the unicorn brings him back; his mother comes to take them both to his aunt in Wales, where his father will join them. The storyline, while straightforward, hints at difficult subjects—religious differences, amputees, separation, family disruptions, the terror of bombing, and more—which are then given only cursory treatment. The pictures are splendid: luminous, full-bodied watercolors that capture the horror of London burning, the glory of the countryside, and mists of dreams. It may be difficult for this to find its audience, but children too young for Michelle Magorian’s Good Night, Mr. Tom (1986) might be captured. (Picture book. 8-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7894-2555-6
Page Count: 60
Publisher: DK Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999
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by Shirley Hughes ; illustrated by Shirley Hughes
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by Shirley Hughes ; illustrated by Clara Vulliamy
by Jeanne M. Lee ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 8, 1999
A book of the basic teachings of Buddha, presented through a collection of six classic, simple tales. When a monkey takes refuge from a monsoon in a cave, he happens upon a group of bickering animals—a monkey, lion, turtle, jackal, and dove. Before the fighting becomes too fierce, a small statue of Buddha begins to glow in the darkest corner. To pass the time—and to stop the fighting—wise Buddha spins enlightening stories of tolerance, endurance, sagacity, truthfulness, kindness, and clarity. Buddha recounts his past lives in many forms—from monkey to pigeon to willow tree—to his captive listeners. Such straightforward yet profound tales combine with the art and design for an example of bookmaking that is aesthetically pleasing in every way. Color-washed linoprints cleverly distinguish the stories from the black-and-white narrative frame, while an informative afterword offers brief background detail about Buddha and these six “birth stories” known as Jatakas. (Picture book/folklore. 4-7)
Pub Date: April 8, 1999
ISBN: 0-374-33548-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999
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by Jeanne M. Lee & illustrated by Jeanne M. Lee
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by Jeanne M. Lee & illustrated by Jeanne M. Lee
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by Laurence Yep & illustrated by Jeanne M. Lee
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