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JOHN JAMES AUDUBON PAINTED BIRDS

Name: JOHN JAMES AUDUBON PAINTED BIRDS
Author: Kate Coombs
ISBN: 978-1-4236-5151-2

From the Little Naturalist series

by Kate Coombs ; illustrated by Seth Lucas ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 19, 2019

Appropriate for nature-loving tots, but don’t expect them to learn too much about the naturalist

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Learn about birds through the lens of John James Audubon.

Part of the Little Naturalists series, this entry reimagines Audubon’s paintings as accessible cartoon-style drawings. Mimicking the dramatic poses and simple, natural settings that defined the iconic painter, the flat, stylized versions do retain some essence of Audubon’s art. These bold versions have rounded bodies, thickly outlined in brown and filled with a minimal palette of matte, earthy colors like straw and sky-blue. Rhyming text in a predictable pattern begins with “He painted…” and ends with a bird-related term such as “NESTS” and “LEGS” printed in an outsized typeset that’s complementary to the colors of the picture opposite. As an early introduction to the avian world, the likable rhymes and clean, stylish illustrations work. As an introduction to Audubon? That’s dicier. Besides the bird poses and a short blurb on the back cover, the painter feel less like an integral part of the text than an adult-centric name check. An equally attractive companion title about John Muir similarly suffers. Though it delves slightly deeper into his life and work, and Muir’s appearance in the art makes it resemble a proper biography, only adult readers with a deep familiarity with Muir’s writings will make any kind of deeper connection from the short rhymes.

Appropriate for nature-loving tots, but don’t expect them to learn too much about the naturalist . (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: March 19, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-4236-5151-2

Page Count: 22

Publisher: Gibbs Smith

Review Posted Online: March 30, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR

- BOOK REVIEW
MONSTER SCHOOL
by Kate Coombs ; illustrated by Lee Gatlin

- BOOK REVIEW
BREATHE AND BE
by Kate Coombs ; illustrated by Anna Emilia Laitinen

- BOOK REVIEW
THE TOOTH FAIRY WARS
by Kate Coombs ; illustrated by Jake Parker

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THIS LITTLE DREAMER

AN INSPIRATIONAL PRIMER

From the This Little series

by Joan Holub ; illustrated by Daniel Roode ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 14, 2020

This Little is both too little and too early to do justice to these important lives.

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A board-book introduction to 10 workers for social justice.

The first double-page spread shows the five men and five women to be featured. Subsequent spreads include a close-up portrait and four-line verse opposite an illustration meant to demonstrate each inspirational figure’s work. A two- or three-line caption reduces the complex work of people like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to vague platitudes. “Mahatma Gandhi led the people of India to freedom from being ruled by Great Britain” is woefully inadequate. Even so, the concept is still far beyond the board-book audience’s understanding. How to communicate to toddlers the work of Henry Bergh, ASPCA founder, or Dr. Jim Yong Kim, 12th chair of the World Bank? (Answer: He “works to help poor countries succeed.”) Dolores Huerta was chosen to represent the United Farm Workers, but including Cesar Chavez in her caption diminishes her role. Brief bios and portraits of 17 additional activists and a blank space labeled “You!” under the headline “Kindness, sharing, speaking out, fair play— / what could you do to help others someday?” complete the book. The bobblehead art, similar to other books in the This Little series, sometimes borders on offensive caricature.

This Little is both too little and too early to do justice to these important lives. (Board book. 2-3)