An interesting account, but Victor remains as inscrutable as ever.
The well-documented case of a feral child who didn’t speak, ran on all fours, and was captured in post-Revolution France and studied by a succession of Enlightenment-influenced thinkers gets an interesting, well-informed retelling, but unlike his inquisitors, the boy never comes into focus.
Two who studied him left detailed accounts of their observations: a teacher at a boys’ school, Pierre-Joseph Bonnaterre, and later, a doctor at a Paris school for deaf-mute children, Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard, who undertook his education and gave him his name: Victor. Itard’s intelligent, compassionate housekeeper opened her home to him. Though Victor never learned to speak, Itard’s mostly humane, child-centered teaching profoundly influenced later educators. Inconsistencies in Losure’s take abound. Scenery and buildings merit detailed description, but historical and cultural context is lacking—the French Revolution isn’t mentioned. Readers are invited to judge “cold-eyed” scientists, especially Bonnaterre (“to him, the boy was only a specimen”) by contemporary standards. Itard’s harshest actions (knowing Victor’s fear of heights, Itard dangled him out a high window) escape editorializing. Text, syntax and vocabulary envision quite young readers, yet the eight pages of scholarly footnotes and academic bibliography are strictly for adults. Resources for children or teachers aren’t provided. Victor is known only through those who observed and studied him. Losure’s speculations on what he might have felt have a distancing effect and do not belong in a work of nonfiction.
An interesting account, but Victor remains as inscrutable as ever. (author's note) (Nonfiction. 10 & up)Pub Date: March 12, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7636-5669-0
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2013
This inspired collaboration adds a heightened poetic dimension to readers’ understanding of Chagall’s life and art.
U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate Lewis and the prolific Yolen team up for a celebratory picture-book biography in verse of the 20th century painter and designer Marc Chagall (1887-1985) that may quickly become a favorite of art-loving families and museum docents.
This handsome book is amply illustrated with archival photos, spot art from Chagall’s oeuvre and, most importantly, 14 full-color reproductions of Chagall’s affecting, mystical, sometimes surreal re-imaginings of his Jewish childhood in Eastern Europe, paintings that swell with touching imagery of joy, loss and beauty. Most of the book’s two-page spreads include an evocative poem (by either Lewis or Yolen) inspired by or reflecting upon the painting on the facing page. These spreads also feature informative, telling biographical briefs that anchor the art and beautifully crafted poetry to Chagall’s long, incident-rich life and artistic career. Details about each painting’s size, medium, date and provenance also add interest. Chagall’s work is represented in over 40 museums in North America, and teachers and parents often find his work particularly accessible and appealing to children who readily and eagerly decode his imagery, making this book useful as well is beautiful.
This inspired collaboration adds a heightened poetic dimension to readers’ understanding of Chagall’s life and art. (Picture book/poetry/biography. 11 & up)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-56846-211-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Creative Editions/Creative Company
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2011
A superbly provocative topic drained of all its color.
Halls’ alien investigation is about as exciting as your neighbor’s vacation slides for the third time.
Unidentified flying objects… really, what more do you need to send a thrill up your spine? A mysterious aircraft, colorful lights pulsing like mad, piloted by who knows what and on a mission to, at the very least, shock the pants off any witness here on Earth, why not be agog and aghast? Plus, there are lots of stories out there, lots of photographs, too, to keep even most skeptics scratching their heads. So why, then, does Halls fail to serve forth the goods? It’s another mystery, if not as compelling as Roswell or the Rendlesham Forest. Considering the slippery nature of the subject, it is critical that the meatiest evidence be presented, and Halls' use of archival photographs is particularly uninspiring. The accompanying text is likewise deflating. Typical of her enthusiasm is this close encounter with alien lights: “A squadron of F-94 fighters was scrambled (quickly sent up) to pursue them but was unsuccessful. ‘They’ve surrounded my plane,’ one pilot reported. ‘What should I do?’ ” This is considered unsuccessful? And what, pray, did the pilot do?
A superbly provocative topic drained of all its color. (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: April 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-7613-6204-3
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Millbrook/Lerner
Review Posted Online: Jan. 17, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2012
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