A clean, clear, lighthearted look at the communicative clout of color, contrast and contour. With a playful wink and lots of white space, Gonyea speaks directly to readers, inviting engagement as a vehicle to understanding fundamentals of design while allowing bright, bold graphics to speak for themselves. Ellipses and parenthetical asides affect a cozy, conspiratorial tone. Amusing, sometimes enigmatic chapter headings like "1:3:9" (an exponential ratio of weight and balance in composition) introduce dynamic demonstrations that prove the power of the purposeful arrangement of the parts of a picture. Heeding its own advice and avoiding highfalutin' theory, this pithy, deceptively simple work is far more visual than verbal (under 450 words), offering an experience in graphic communication rather than a treatise. Artists, educators and other fans of Molly Bang's bible, Picture This (2000), will delight in this energetic treatment of the whys and wherefores of relationship and relativity in illustration and will want it in core collections. It should find a place in every collection. (Nonfiction. 6+)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-8050-7576-2
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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Nicholas is a bright boy who likes to make trouble at school, creatively.
When he decides to torment his fifth-grade English teacher, Mrs. Granger (who is just as smart as he is), by getting everyone in the class to replace the word "pen'' with "frindle,'' he unleashes a series of events that rapidly spins out of control. If there's any justice in the world, Clements (Temple Cat, 1995, etc.) may have something of a classic on his hands. By turns amusing and adroit, this first novel is also utterly satisfying. The chess-like sparring between the gifted Nicholas and his crafty teacher is enthralling, while Mrs. Granger is that rarest of the breed: a teacher the children fear and complain about for the school year, and love and respect forever after.
With comically realistic black-and-white illustrations by Selznick (The Robot King, 1995, etc.), this is a captivating tale—one to press upon children, and one they'll be passing among themselves. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-689-80669-8
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1996
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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For the 90's, a handsome, well-documented collection of stories about nine uniquely American characters. In her intelligent introduction, Osborne explains their genesis ``from various combinations of historical fact, the storytelling of ordinary people, and the imagination of professional writers'' and notes that changing times put a new light on stories deriding various groups (including women and even animals). Thus her intention is to emphasize ``gargantuan physical courage and absurd humor'' and to ``bring out the vulnerable and compassionate side'' despite the stories' ``ineradicable taint of violence.'' Osborne succeeds pretty well in her intention, piecing together stories that make fine introductions to characters like Mose and Stormalong. Her approach suits Johnny Appleseed and John Henry better than it does Davy Crockett battling a panther, but she does manage to put a new slant on Pecos Bill and his bouncing bride without undermining the story (there's no question of a wife's disobedience here; Sue wants to ride Bill's horse as a test of skill). The telling is more polished than lively—Glen Rounds's irrepressible wit (Ol' Paul, the Mighty Logger, 1949) is more fun, but these versions are perfectly acceptable. McCurdy's vigorous wood engravings, tinted with lucid color, contribute a rugged frontier flavor; lively, though a bit formal in style, they suit the text admirably. Each story is introduced by source notes; a story-by-story bibliography provides a good roundup of this popular genre. (Folklore. 6-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-679-80089-1
Page Count: 116
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1991
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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