A small, intense, original tale that links art, faith, and natural cycles. The women of South Africa’s rural Besotho people paint bright designs on their houses in silent prayer to their ancestors for rain. In the midst of a long drought, young Elsina’s plea to be allowed to paint over her mothers patterns is gently rejected, as rain is supposed to wash the house clean first. Then a new baby, and a new room added to the house, gives Elsina her chance. In Winter’s small, controlled illustrations, Elsina’s careful scenes of clouds and crops differ from, but harmonize beautifully with, her mother’s abstract geometrical designs. And, in time, the rains return, earning Elsina permission to paint—and repaint, as seasons pass—the entire dwelling. “We live in plenty,” she concludes. “The ancestors listen.” Like the child in Catherine Stock’s Gugu’s House (2001), or Patricia Markun’s Little Painter of Sabaña Grande (1993), Elsina is both allowed to express her artistic talent, and respected by her elders for it—wisdom in any society. (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: April 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-374-32118-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Frances Foster/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2004
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
In 1840, Libby and her parents live in Michigan, near a Potawatomi settlement. A young Indian girl (Libby's father calls her ``Fawn'' because she resembles a deer) befriends Libby, who sneaks away to visit Fawn's village while her own mother is giving birth. When the Indians are seized by white militia intent on moving them west, Libby is captured with them. Fawn's father leads his family and Libby in an escape that's notably without drama, returning Libby to her parents; Fawn's family heads north. Whelan's narrative is simple and readable, including a few basic insights into Indian and pioneer life (e.g., the Native Americans occasionally eat dogs). But her plot is languid, while the girls aren't drawn vividly enough to give their friendship much intensity. Gentle b&w illustrations. (Fiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-679-84464-3
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Sam and Rowen have befriended a nesting duck in the park. When Sam finds the nest abandoned, with a dog's tracks around it, he fears the worst. Carefully, he and Rowen carry the eight eggs to their apartment and put them on the basement boiler, where they hope they'll stay warm enough to hatch. The difficulty of turning the eggs several times a day without arousing the suspicions of cranky superintendent Mr. Hedges induces the boys to enlist every child in the building to help divert his attention. The kids also figure out ways to use enough hot water to keep the boiler—and the eggs—warm. Of course, when the ducklings hatch it turns out that Mr. Hedges has known about them all along. Eventually, the hatchlings are adopted by a mother duck in the park. Sam now recognizes the analogy between his own ability to love them from a distance and his father's constant love for him, even though he has divorced Sam's mother and moved away. Newly proficient readers will enjoy the light, pleasant story, its happy outcome, and Chambliss's nicely expressive b&w illustrations. (Fiction. 7-9)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-525-45071-8
Page Count: 84
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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