BECOMING BUDDHA
The Story of Siddhartha
by Whitney Stewart & illustrated by Sally Rippin
Sandwiched between opening and closing comments from the Dalai Lama, this spiritual biography of the Buddha imparts the major events of Siddhartha’s journey to enlightenment with a combination of stylized prose—“At a time when the oldest Bodhi trees in Asia were still in youthful bloom, Queen Maya had a dream”—and equally stylized images of the large-eyed, long-eared holy man surrounded by silver beaded spirals and lotus flowers. Not so grand, nor so rich in detail, as Demi’s version (1996), this still makes a suitable brief introduction to the origins, ideals and spirit of Buddhism. (sideways format, historical afterword) (Picture book/biography. 8-10)