Nonfiction

Book Review: Meadowlands by Thomas Yezerski

| Tasha

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Meadowlands by Thomas F. Yezerski

This nonfiction picture book tells the story of the history of the wetlands that are now known as the Meadowlands in New Jersey.  From hundreds of years ago, when the wetlands had 20,000 acres of marshes through to the 1800s when the land was drained and filled in with dirt to the 20th century when the industries came to surround the Meadowlands with their factories.  The wetlands were used as a garbage dump, filled with waste and filth.  It became a problem area in New Jersey until the state decided that it needed to be cleaned up.  By 1985 with the clean up and then the developers, there was less than 7000 acres of wetlands left.  But the wetlands began to recover, with time the lack of pollution and the rivers and tides cleaned the water and allowed plants, birds, fish and animals to return.  This is a celebration of wetland recovery and the strength of the ecosystem as well as a stirring call to action.

Yezerski offers just the right amount of information here for an elementary-aged audience.  From the brief history of when the wetlands were unchanged, readers see how steadily the impact of humans deteriorated the size and quality of them.  The garbage portion of the story is startling, stark and brief, indicating the small amount of time it took to do such extensive damage.  When the book turns to the recovery of the Meadowlands, the tone lifts and the text turns to celebrating the nature returning to the area.

The pages of the book are bordered with objects pulled from that illustration.  So the two-page spread of the 1800s is bordered with a knife, musket, scythe, trap, kettle, muskrat and more.  This adds to the feeling of time changing and the area changing along with it.  The watercolor illustrations are often looking at the wetlands from above, showing the devastation and changes.  Beautifully, as the wetlands recover, the illustrations become more close and intimate with the wetlands and the animals.

Get this one on your elementary nature and ecology shelves.  It is a readable and very successful look at wetland renewal for children.  Appropriate for ages 7-10.

Reviewed from copy received from Farrar, Straus & Giroux. 

Book Review: Vincent van Gogh and the Colors of the Wind by Chiara Lossani

| Tasha

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Vincent van Gogh and the Colors of the Wind by Chiara Lossani, illustrated by Octavia Monaco

Based on Vincent van Gogh’s letters to his brother Theo, this book explores how Van Gogh became one of the greatest painters.  Vincent is enthusiastic and always moving as a child.  When he got older, he became a preacher like his father but was fired from that job because he preached as much about art as Jesus.  Vincent then became a full-time painter, but everyone doubted this man who dressed like a scarecrow and wandered the fields.  Vincent discovers the Impressionists and finds friends among them, but his work suffers as he spends time in Paris and away from nature.  Vincent is finding his voice as an artist, creating paintings that are groundbreaking and surprising.  All with the support of Theo, his brother and best friend.

Lossani writes in prose here, but it flows like poetry.  She uses gorgeous imagery in her text, such as when she compares Gauguin and Van Gogh: “Can two volcanoes stand side by side without causing a calamity?”  Her prose has a modern feel, an artistic flow that works well with the subject matter.

Immediately upon seeing the cover of this picture book, you know it is something unique.  The illustrations have an energy to them.  Without imitating Van Gogh’s work, they somehow capture the feel, the flow, and the colors.  They are dynamic, modern and push the boundary of art being used in picture books for children.

This is a dynamic biographic picture book for children that will work well when used with elementary children in a classroom.  It is also one that would work well for families heading to an art museum.  Appropriate for ages 7-10.

Reviewed from copy received from Eerdmans Books for Young Readers.

Also reviewed by Fuse #8.

Book Review: The Watcher by Jeanette Winter

| Tasha

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The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps by Jeanette Winter

Follow Jane Goodall’s life in this vivid picture book.  The book follows Jane from her childhood where she spent a lot of time watching the animals around her, including having a robin nest built on her bookcase in her room.  Jane left home soon after graduating from school, heading to Kenya.  There she met Louis Leakey who was looking for someone to observe chimpanzees.  Jane headed into the jungle to watch the chimpanzees, spending time out near them just quietly viewing them.  She learned all sorts of things that no one had ever discovered before.  Jane spent many years with the chimpanzees learning, but then people began to threaten the chimpanzee habitat, so Jane had to leave them and become their voice, speaking out to assure their survival. 

Winter has created a book that speaks to the heart of what Goodall has done, all of her accomplishments and discoveries pale in the book and in life to her dedication to the animals themselves.  Goodall is a perfect subject for a picture book.  She is a brave woman who braved living alone in the wilderness to do what she felt she was meant to do with her life.  Winter captures all of this in few words, allowing Goodall’s life to speak for itself.

Winter’s illustrations are done in acrylic paint and pen.  They have strong forms, deep colors, and a childlike quality that make the book even more approachable for children.  I especially enjoy the cover image with the reflection of the chimpanzees in the lenses of her binoculars.  It sums up the book delightfully.

There is something special about a book that tells children to follow their hearts, but this one is even more special because it also shows children the value of watching and learning too.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Random House Children’s Books.

Book Review: The Little Plant Doctor by Jean Marzollo

| Tasha

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The Little Plant Doctor: A Story about George Washington Carver by Jean Marzollo, illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max

An old tree in Diamond, Missouri recounts its favorite story, a tale about George Washington Carver as a little boy.  When the tree met George, they were the same height, and George planted wildflowers around the tree.  He watched the flowers closely, moving them from sun to shade if they drooped.  George was bright, but was not allowed to go to school because he was African-American.  So he stayed home, continuing to study plants on his own.  Eventually, George did get to go to school and then to college.  Now the tree stands in the George Washington Carver National Monument, helping to tell the story of a young George Washington Carver who became one of the most famous scientists in history.

Marzollo has chosen a unique perspective from which to tell the story of George Washington Carver.  It makes it less of a biography, but still firmly roots the story in reality.  At times, the wording in the text can feel clunky and the use of the tree as narrator cumbersome.  This is especially true in the last part of the book.

Wilson-Max’s illustrations bring the book to life with their bright, deep colors that speak to the beauty of the plants, the strength of the tree, and the dedication of George to his pursuit of science.  They have a pleasing rustic quality to them that speaks to the natural setting.

This friendly book about George Washington Carver will entertain young children and is also educational about the famous scientist.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from ARC received from Holiday House.

Book Review: Manners Mash-Up

| Tasha

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Manners Mash-Up

Fourteen picture book creators take on manners in this mash up of talent.  Each illustrator is given a double page spread to fill with their work as well as some advice on how to mind their manners.  There is a specific setting in each one, including school, birthday party, table manners, and the supermarket.  All of the illustrators approach manners with a light touch and plenty of humor, meaning that this is one manners book that children will actually enjoy!

One of the pleasures of the book is turning the page and discovering an entirely different style from a new illustrator.   The book includes illustrators like Bob Shea, Tedd Arnold, Lynn Munsinger, Sophie Blackall, and Adam Rex.   It keeps the book very fresh, as each illustrator works in their distinct and unique style.  The lists of manner rules are very silly, especially when they deal with the ultimate manner rule of no picking! 

Manner books at libraries tend to come in sets of books and trend toward the preachy.  This is a fresh, funny look at manners that puts those to shame.  Make room on your library shelf for this one!  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Dial Books for Young Readers.

Also reviewed by:

Book Review: Me…Jane by Patrick McDonnell

| Tasha

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Me…Jane by Patrick McDonnell

Jane is a girl who loves to be outside watching the animals.  She takes her toy chimpanzee Jubilee with her on all of her adventures.  They watch the squirrels, birds and spiders.  They figure out where eggs come from.  They go together up into her favorite tree to dream about being Tarzan in Africa.  Jane dreamed about a life where she could study animals, learn about them, and watch them up close.  And that’s exactly what she grew up to do as Jane Goodall, chimpanzee expert and animal activist.

McDonnell writes with a restraint that is beautiful.  He has pared down Goodall’s childhood into a few seminal moments that speak to the adult she became.  Delightfully readable, the book has only a few lines of text per page, making it very accessible for young readers.  Yet it works as a biography because those few lines carry a weight with them.

The art in the book, also by McDonnell, combines old-fashioned stamps of chickens, squirrels, clocks and more with paintings that have a whimsical warmth about them.  This gives the book a feeling that it is about the past without being specific.  The color palette works especially well here with its yellows, greens, blues and browns.

The final pages of the book have information on Goodall’s life as well as a message from Jane herself to the readers.  It’s an ideal way to end a biographical picture book written for an age that is too young for bibliographies.

A playful, winning biographical picture book that celebrates the childhood of the incredible Jane Goodall.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

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Book Review: Queen of the Falls by Chris Van Allsburg

| Tasha

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Queen of the Falls by Chris Van Allsburg

What does a daredevil look like?  What traits must they embody?  Take the first person who ever went over Niagara Falls in a barrel.  Who do you think that person might be?  I’ll bet you didn’t think of a retired charm school teacher named Annie Edson Taylor.  She decided to try for fame and fortune through her stunt.  So she had a custom-made barrel designed and created, riding it over the falls in 1901.  This picture book follows her through her decision, preparations, over the falls, and then how her chance at fame turned out.  It is a book that explores fame, courage, and stereotypes.

Van Allsburg’s writing is rich, offering more text than is usually found in a picture book.  His picture books tend to have more text and be aimed at an older audience than general picture books, so this is exactly in the vein of his previous work.  The writing offers readers a glimpse into Annie’s though process as she changed from teacher to daredevil.  So much of the story would have been lost without the writing to carry it.

Of course any Van Allsburg book is about the illustrations.  He captures moments of inspiration, times of disappointment and anger, and also what a person’s face would look like as they go over Niagara Falls.  There is a beauty to this feisty woman who would not stop because of derision from those around her.  Van Allsburg reveals her as a real heroine in his book, creating incredible moments of tension in his art.

Highly recommended, this book celebrates a vibrant, risk-taking woman who deserves to be much better known than she currently is.  Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from library copy.

Book Review–Pablo Neruda: Poet of the People by Monica Brown

| Tasha

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Pablo Neruda: Poet of the People by Monica Brown, illustrated by Julie Paschkis

Follow the transformation of a young boy named Neftali into the poet Pablo Neruda.  The book starts with Neruda’s childhood and moves through his life as he begins to write poetry in his signature green ink.  His connection to nature is emphasized throughout the book from his love of the sea to the stones of Chile.  It also speaks to his love of children and his growth into a fighter for workers’ rights.  This is a lovely, quick glimpse of an amazing poet.

Brown’s words are simple and accessible to children.  She manages to explore Neruda’s inspirations without losing her young audience.  Rather she talks in detail about what inspired his poetry, what he meant as a person, and where he came from.  It is a powerful way to look at Neruda and his work.

The art by Paschkis is extraordinary.  Her paintings combine moments throughout Neruda’s life with words.  The words grow on leaves and trees.  They show in the sun and the moon.  They form the very ground.  It is an expressive way to show the power of words in Neruda’s life as well as how they came from all that surrounds him.

Explore Neruda through beautifully simple text and illustrations that have words streaming through them.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Henry Holt.

Review–Planting the Wild Garden by Kathryn O. Galbraith

| Tasha

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Planting the Wild Garden by Kathryn O. Galbraith, illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin

This lovely book moves from the steady and deliberate planting of seeds by farmers to the ways that seeds are planted in nature.  The seeds sweep along the in the wind.  They are dropped by birds eating from the seed heads.  They pop and snap to new places.  They are carried on the coats of animals.  They are planted by squirrels hiding them for winter.  Told in a poetic voice with images that evoke nature in all of its beauty, this book is one to be treasured.

Galbraith’s writing is leisurely and lovely, lingering on each of the moments that spread seeds across nature.  She explains each instance in detail, offering noises, specific plant names, and building moments that readers themselves can feel and be in for a bit.  She also skillfully blends in animals in each setting, bringing it further to life.

Halperin’s style works very well with this subject matter.  She plays with light and dark, draws the animals and plants described in the text.  Through her fine-lined and gently colored images, nature comes to life.  One of her most successful pages is early in the book, capturing the movement of the wind in colors and lines.

A natural, lovely look at seeds and planting in the wild, this book is a gorgeous tribute to wilderness.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from copy received from Peachtree Publishers.

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