From the elegant, manuscript-style lettering against a serene expanse of blue sky on its lovely title spread, this is a thoughtfully conceived, exquisitely rendered book. In her usual graceful, lucid style, Hodges describes Francis's early concern for the poor, his decision to join them as an itinerant brother, his love for animals, and the cràche he made with the help of the humble folk of Greccio. Using watercolors to create dappled impressionistic landscapes, subtly defined portraits, and enough touches of period detail to catch the flavor of 13th-century Italy, Lewin contributes paintings rich in variety and beguiling effects, such as a cloudlike herd of sheep by starlight. Beautiful bookmaking, fine book. (Biography. 5-10)*justify no*
Pub Date: Sept. 30, 1991
ISBN: 0-684-19173-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scribner
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1991
Delval continues her series of introductory books on Christian themes with this latest exploration (The Bible for Young Children, illustrated by Götting, 2010, etc.), which sets out to explain the concept of God to children in creative, often metaphorical ways. The format offers one aspect or characteristic describing God on each left-hand page, using the structure “God is…,” which is followed by a short explanation set in large type. Many of these characteristics are commonly discussed in Christian settings, such as viewing God as a shepherd, healer or parent. Other images of God are unusual, presenting God as silence or joy or in our tears. The explanatory text is written in a thoughtful, calm voice with a comforting vision of God in the description of each characteristic. Though God is referred to with traditional terminology as male and as a father figure, the overall impression is a fairly contemporary view of God as kind, loving and all-encompassing. This modern point of view is complemented by Nascimbeni’s bright, imaginative illustrations on the right-hand pages, using children and images from nature painted in a cheery, surrealistically childlike style. (Picture book/religion. 5-10)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8028-5391-2
Page Count: 90
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
This British import offers an eclectic approach to biblical stories and history with panoramic, detailed illustrations, colorful maps and sidebars with “travel tips” geared to travelers of the time period. The organizational strategy consists of 20 journeys stretching from the time of creation as portrayed in the Bible to the era of the early Christians. Key characters are introduced in terms of their journeys to new lands or their returns to homelands. Each spread includes some text, spot illustrations and a larger illustration filled with people of the era, including details of their work, homes and clothing. Helpful labels and explanatory sentences are worked into the text, giving the reader lots to look at on every spread. The maps are a useful feature, often showing the same area on multiple pages, but with different names as the occupying groups changed. Most of the key characters, main stories and major locations described in the Bible are presented, giving a fairly comprehensive introduction to a complex subject. There are no correlations to relevant Bible verses, and although there is an index, it references journey numbers rather than page numbers with no indication of this, rendering it frustrating, baffling and useless for people unable to intuit this distinction. Though the pages seem crowded at first glance, a considerable amount of information is packed into a short volume, and the explanations of complicated history will be useful to adults teaching Bible history and interesting to young readers. (Picture book/religion. 6-10)
Pub Date: April 15, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7459-6088-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Lion/Trafalgar
Review Posted Online: March 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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