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HOW OLD AM I? by JR

HOW OLD AM I?

1–100 Faces From Around the World

by JR & Julie Pugeat ; illustrated by JR

Pub Date: April 21st, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-83866-158-8
Publisher: Phaidon

Readers will meet and learn about 100 people in this artistic concept book.

Created by JR, the artist behind the international art project Inside Out, the book features black-and-white portraits of individuals from all around the world. These photos are arranged uniformly across a series of double-page spreads beginning with Gwen, age 1, and ending with Beatrice, age 100. Each spread introduces the subject with a greeting from their language, lists their place of birth and current residence, presents a world map locating both places (if they are different), and provides a brief paragraph from their point of view that dances loosely around the topic of age. Gwen, a Briton, “can say some words”; Beatrice, who is from the U.S., is a little surprised to be 100. Both Gwen and Beatrice present White, and in between readers will meet Costa Rican 10-year-old Diego, Zimbabwean 33-year-old Ngonidzashe, Vietnamese 48-year-old Vu, and Iraq-born Canadian 90-year-old Menashe, among others. As readers delve further into the book they’ll notice the background colors of the pages change hue from a bright yellow, shifting through the color wheel, and returning to yellow. The book is beautiful and borders on the profound (especially for older caregivers), but the question remains: Who is this for? Babies obsessed with faces may love the portraits; toddlers may learn numbers, colors, etc.; older readers may learn some geography—all ages get a little, but is it enough? (This book was reviewed digitally with 8.5-by-14.5-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

By providing a little for everyone, the book may spread itself too thin.

(Picture book. All ages)