The Dillons illustrate the familiar verses of Ecclesiastes in the King James version, one spread for every double-edged phrase, e.g., “a time to mourn, and a time to dance.” They have taken inspiration for these gouache, acrylic, watercolor, and ink paintings the great art of the world; the opening image is based on the Book of Kells; among other styles used are Japanese ukiyo-e, Greek red-and-black pottery, kiva painting, medieval woodcuts, Russian icons, and Thai shadow plays. Every one is executed with meticulous precision and great feeling; all are annotated at the end. This is a gift book in the best sense, to be read often; if children don’t respond immediately to its overall formality, they will surely find pages to pore over herein. (Picture book. 9+)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-590-47887-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Blue Sky/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The team that gave us City Alphabet (2009) takes on urban numbers in the same inventive way, still holding readers at a slight emotional distance. Beam takes pictures. He sees numbers everywhere: painted on Dumpsters, printed on cardboard, burnt into metal, carved in stone. This book is not for children just learning their numbers. Instead of presenting a simple 1-20 sequence, it starts with a row of zeros, continue with 1/2, find 2.5 percent in neon in a loan-office window, double-O seven in a metal road plate, 18 kg on a bag of garden rocks. Schwartz adds the utterly clear and utterly brief text: each number spelled out and a description ("Eleven / Spray-painted on cement. / Sidewalk"). The photographs are gritty and textured, always showing the odd angle or the slant light. The numerals as they are printed are a dropped-out image on a white ground: The number nine is the translucent, iridescent blue of the vinyl sticker on a storefront; the final image of a cardboard barcode reflects the same worn and stained paper. Like the first, this is more an artist’s book than one for little children, but it does effectively invite readers to enjoy close and repeated examination of the form, shape and whimsy of numbers. (Picture book. 10 & up)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-55498-081-9
Page Count: 60
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
A well-written tale for tweens that may spark conversations about dealing with crucial changes.
A preteen navigates the big and small challenges of life in this debut novel.
Lizzy Zander stands on the doorstep of a whole new life after her family relocates from New Jersey to New York City. Although Lizzy knows the move to the city is the best thing for her dad, who is living with multiple sclerosis, she can’t help worrying that she’ll never fit in. Things start to look up when Lizzy becomes friends with Cassie, a fellow swimmer who lives in the building next door. Cassie introduces Lizzie to new friends and includes her in a secret club. As a different world of people and places opens up to Lizzie, she must deal with all the complicated feelings that come with big life changes. She is worried about starting a new school and deeply misses her old friends in New Jersey. Most confusing of all, she is both troubled and embarrassed by her dad’s deteriorating health. Clemans does an excellent job tackling the issues, both large and small, and the accompanying range of emotions that Lizzy is facing. The author handles Lizzy’s very real feelings about her dad’s disease with great care while deftly portraying the other hurdles, such as peer pressure and fitting in, that make up the daily lives of most adolescents. The author’s narrative, particularly appropriate for tweens who are struggling with upheavals in their lives or families, also features a diverse cast of characters. Lizzy, with pale skin and freckles, envies Cassie’s “gorgeous skin…like coffee ice cream.” Funny emails from Lizzy to her friends back in New Jersey and sweet sketches help provide a window into the girl’s world.
A well-written tale for tweens that may spark conversations about dealing with crucial changes.Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-08-173141-0
Page Count: 183
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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