A glimpse into Soviet children’s-book illustration; likely of more interest to scholars than to children.
Hot off the American presses comes this translated collection of three illustrated texts from the 1920s golden age of Soviet children’s-book publishing.
The titular text, by Mayakovsky, stands as the first chapter in this collection of tales, all translated by Ostashevsky. It tells the story of a little boy who wants a horse from a toyshop. The shop clerk tells him and his father, “No way, / We’re all out of horses today. / Still, / a horse of any color can / Be made by / a master artisan.” They then go to six different workers to get materials and specific expertise for building the toy horse. This story, like the other two in the book (Mandelstam’s “Two Trams” and Kharms’ “Play”), centers on themes of industry, modernity, and the dignity of work. In all cases, the art far outshines the text, which has a stilted sound, possibly due to poetics lost in translation. But pictures by Popova, Ender, and Konashevich, respectively, are wondrous to behold in their own right and as precursors to mid-20th-century Western picture-book art. Popova’s human figures are big, burly examples of Soviet manhood; their tools and the gathering team appear in brightly colored squares that offset their bulk. Ender’s gray, black, red, and blue illustrations are almost abstract in their depictions of the titular trams and their tracks. Konashevich’s figures are fluid and likely the most conventional-looking for modern American audiences.
A glimpse into Soviet children’s-book illustration; likely of more interest to scholars than to children. (Picture book. 6 & up)Pub Date: March 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-68137-092-7
Page Count: 48
Publisher: New York Review Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017
A successful marriage of art and poetry.
Will Chambers wrestles with fat stigma, self-loathing, disordered eating, and the ultimate desire to be accepted.
Lerner’s illustrated verse novel opens on Will’s fourth grade year. It’s the first time the word fat is hurled at him as an insult, the first time he understands that the rest of the world sees something wrong with his body. Three years later, shame-filled Will is eating less and less. It’s Markus, his kind, cool skateboarder friend, who helps Will when he eventually breaks and who is there as he works on piecing himself back together. Lerner uses the format to great effect, as the staccato lines of broken verse are well matched to Will’s honest, disjointed inner thoughts. The setup makes for an effective portrayal of Will’s painful mental battles. The black-and-white illustrations mostly depict Markus; Will’s crush, Jules, a skinny girl; and a prickly, monsterlike version of how Will sees himself. Peppered throughout are balls of black scribbles representing Will’s anxiety, fears, and the anger he directs at himself. The diary feel adds to readers’ understanding of Will. Lerner writes very affecting scenes that will resonate with some readers and provide insight for others, shedding powerful light on boys’ body image struggles. All characters appear White.
A successful marriage of art and poetry. (Verse fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781665905152
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
A powerfully candid and soulful account of an immigrant experience.
A Taiwanese family tries their luck in America.
In this verse novel, it’s 1980, and nearly 11-year-old Ai Shi and her mother prepare to leave Taipei to join her father in California, where he is pursuing a business opportunity with a friend. The extended family send them off, telling Ai Shi she’s so lucky to go to the “beautiful country”—the literal translation of the Chinese name for the U.S. Once they are reunited with Ba, he reveals that they have instead poured their savings into a restaurant in the remote Los Angeles County town of Duarte. Ma and Ba need to learn to cook American food, but at least, despite a betrayal by Ba’s friend, they have their own business. However, the American dream loses its shine as language barriers, isolation, financial stress, and racism take their toll. Ai Shi internalizes her parents’ disappointment in their new country by staying silent about bullying at school and her own unmet needs. Her letters home to her favorite cousin, Mei, maintain that all is well. After a year of enduring unrelenting challenges, including vandalism by local teens, the family reaches its breaking point. Hope belatedly arrives in the form of community allies and a change of luck. Kuo deftly touches on complex issues, such as the human cost of the history between China and Taiwan as well as the socio-economic prejudices and identity issues within Asian American communities.
A powerfully candid and soulful account of an immigrant experience. (Verse historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: June 28, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06-311898-0
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2022
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