In 1827, a music student cut a lock of hair as a memento from the head of recently deceased Ludwig van Beethoven. In 1994, two Americans bought the hair for about $7,300 and had scientists subject it to forensic tests. This slim volume introduces Beethoven’s life, with an emphasis on his poor health and emotional problems, interspersing chapters about the hair’s journey from Vienna to Arizona and the scientific analysis. Although the lock’s history intersects with Denmark’s remarkable evacuation of Jews in World War II, the specifics of its journey are unknown, which leaches some of the excitement from the episode. One must also wonder how many child readers will be captivated by the revelation that Beethoven’s hair had extremely high levels of lead, much as the authors strain to build to a dramatic climax. Beethoven fans and music students may be intrigued, but overall the audience for this mildly interesting story will be limited. Black-and-white archival illustrations and photographs add little to the appeal. (authors’ note, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-57091-714-1
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2009
Subtitled “A concise guide to a century of contrast and change,” with “concise” as the key word, this slim survey takes sweeping, single-spread glances at wars, the decline of empires, show business, the battle for racial and sexual equality, the globalization of US culture, and other major themes of this century. Underscoring the text’s generalizations, the many full-color photographs are chosen to create pointed juxtapositions, matching, for instance, Marlene Dietrich to Buzz Lightyear, or impoverished parents and children in 1912 London and in modern Somalia. Selected events are highlighted both in chronologies on every spread and along a timeline that spans the last four pages. Too scanty for basic reference, and employing oversimplification (as well as the same photograph of Mickey Mouse twice) to a fault” “the culture of Hollywood, represented by the smiling face of Mickey Mouse, became the culture of the whole world”—this provides only a slim framework on which to hang some understanding of recent history. (charts, chronology, glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 10-13)
Pub Date: May 17, 1999
ISBN: 0-19-521488-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Oxford Univ.
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1999
A continuation of the ``Young Readers' History of the Civil War,'' begun in A Nation Torn (1990). Here, Ray discusses the soldiers' personal experiences: their early enthusiasm; the conditions they found in the armies on either side; their tempering under war's ordeals; roles played by diverse national groups; the hardships of hospitals and POW camps; the feelings of returning veterans. Ray's writing is vivid, if undistinguished, and aided by memorable photos of the period. Chapter notes would have been useful for tracing the origins of generalizations about the soldiers' feelings, and chronological information might have been better integrated. Nevertheless, an intense portrayal of the military experience, with resonance for today. Bibliography; index. (Nonfiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: May 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-525-67333-4
Page Count: 102
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1991
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