I was thrilled to see Roald Dahl, one of my favorite authors, included in the Who Was/Is biography series, but even happier that the less pleasant aspI was thrilled to see Roald Dahl, one of my favorite authors, included in the Who Was/Is biography series, but even happier that the less pleasant aspects of his personality and life were not glossed over just because this is a children's book. It presents a rather balanced view, and is fairly thorough though it is a short, quick read. It was well researched and the facts coincide with other sources I have read about Dahl's life. The ups and downs of both Dahl's career and his personal life, coupled with all the challenges he overcame, will surely inspire readers.
The insets and asides are interesting, and the black-and-white drawings really help to bring the facts to life. The timeline of Dahl's life in the back of the book could have been more detailed, and the world timeline more relevant, but these are small nitpicks of a high-quality, engaging nonfiction book that will especially interest young readers after devouring some of Dahl's children's novels....more
I'm unclear who the audience for this book is, since alphabet picture books are for 3-5 year olds who would not have seen any of these shows or heard I'm unclear who the audience for this book is, since alphabet picture books are for 3-5 year olds who would not have seen any of these shows or heard of any of these famous divas. The letters F and S are not devoted to "Broadway's leading ladies" (Fosse = male choreographer & Sondheim = male composer), and the letters X and Y do not even designate people. The last few pages are devoted to very brief biographies of all the performers mentioned in the alphabet line-up. An encyclopedia approach for middle grade readers would have been a much better choice for this subject matter; it would have alleviated the restrictions of limited text (allowing the author to do justice to these extraordinary lives) and the one-person-per-letter format (which doesn't fit well anyway)....more
Beginner biography of Helen Keller, aimed at lower elementary students. Focuses heavily on Helen's pivotal relationship with Annie Sullivan. Text is aBeginner biography of Helen Keller, aimed at lower elementary students. Focuses heavily on Helen's pivotal relationship with Annie Sullivan. Text is augmented by both illustrations and photographs from the time period. Contains a glossary and index, but no sources are cited. ...more
Picture book biography of the woman who took over the supervision of the Brooklyn Bridge construction when her engineer husband fell ill in 1872. The Picture book biography of the woman who took over the supervision of the Brooklyn Bridge construction when her engineer husband fell ill in 1872. The text only briefly mentions how Emily dealt with the opposition over a woman dong a man's job during a time period when girls rarely even attended secondary school, but I craved more details on that aspect of her situation. The basics of bridge construction are discussed, yet the impact on the communities that the bridge connected is left out. Well-written back matter contains a short author's note, more biographical information on Emily Warren Roebling, a glossary, select bibliography, and further reading recommendations. I learned from the back matter that Emily and her husband had a child; this is never even mentioned in the book's body text. This is a sound biography, with a heavy dose of bridge engineering concepts mixed into the text, but much of the social context is missing. What makes Emily so unique is her refusal to allow her gender to define her potential, even though women were not recognized for their intelligence during Emily's lifetime; this biography touches on that but does not explore it fully.
Equations, mathematical measurements, and engineering terms are mixed directly into the illustrations to support the book's content in a meaningful way. The artist very effectively breaks down the engineering terminology and processes. The endpapers are especially impressive; the front endpapers contain photos of the original Brooklyn Bridge in the 1800s and the back endpapers contain modern photos of the bridge. ...more
Nonfiction picture book about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s funeral procession. His name is mentioned only once near the end of the book. Beautifully Nonfiction picture book about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s funeral procession. His name is mentioned only once near the end of the book. Beautifully written, but doesn't provide much historical detail for children to understand the context of the story or get to know the subject of this biographical book. That information is squeezed into a half-page of back matter, and not worded in a child-friendly manner. Watercolor illustrations extend the text by showing great crowds of mourners. ...more
A picture book biography of Noah Webster that is well researched and masterfully presented. The voice is both engaging and knowledgable. Collage illusA picture book biography of Noah Webster that is well researched and masterfully presented. The voice is both engaging and knowledgable. Collage illustrations mix authentic looking elements from Webster's time period, including actual historic newspapers and books, with fun characters. A fictitious (but very credible) Noah took his red pen to the manuscript and left editorial notes throughout the text. All these choices come together to make an impressive contribution to children's nonfiction. ...more
Picture book biography about Amelia Earhart, focusing mostly on her childhood activities, personality traits, and fText: 4 stars Illustrations: 3 stars
Picture book biography about Amelia Earhart, focusing mostly on her childhood activities, personality traits, and family influences. Does a good job of showing readers how Amelia's early years formed her adult self and paved the way for her later achievements. The modern art style doesn't quite support the historical context of the book, which isn't emphasized enough for the targeted age group....more
A solid picture book biography of Amelia Earhart with much emphasis on how she pushed boundaries and ignored stereoText: 4 stars Illustrations: 3 stars
A solid picture book biography of Amelia Earhart with much emphasis on how she pushed boundaries and ignored stereotypical gender expectations of her time period. Illustrations seem old-fashioned, owing at least in part to the age of the book (which was published in 1998)....more
Children's nonfiction picture book about the life of Antoine de Saint-Exupery, the author of The Little Prince. TheText: 3 stars Illustrations: 5 stars
Children's nonfiction picture book about the life of Antoine de Saint-Exupery, the author of The Little Prince. There is a lot of text regarding his livelihood as a pilot, but very little about his writing in general or The Little Prince in particular, which is really what I was interested in reading about. So I'm disappointed with the text. But the illustrations are glorious, in true Peter Sis fashion. ...more
Children's nonfiction picture book about Christopher Columbus's voyage to discover America. As with all of Peter SiText: 4 stars Illustrations: 5 stars
Children's nonfiction picture book about Christopher Columbus's voyage to discover America. As with all of Peter Sis's picture books, the illustrations provide talking points just as much as, if not more than, the text does.
I would have liked just a bit more detail in the text. Specifically I want to know more about the hardships faced during the actual voyage. The book mentions "the rebellious crew," but what did Columbus do to lead them to victory, other than lie about the number of miles travelled? The ending is a bit vague. Columbus never knew he had reached America, but didn't he figure out at some point in his life that he wasn't in the Orient?
But Sis does a good job of distilling the information and relating what life was like for Columbus. This book provides a good starting point to entice children into reading a fuller biography of Columbus. ...more
A picture book biography of Rosa Parks, one of the books in the Ordinary People Change the World series. The fact that Rosa Parks looks like a child tA picture book biography of Rosa Parks, one of the books in the Ordinary People Change the World series. The fact that Rosa Parks looks like a child throughout the book, even when she has grown up, is confusing. The use of first-person narration as well as the invented dialogue place this book in an odd hybrid category blending fact with fiction, perhaps most appropriately labelled as historical fiction rather than biography....more
Very incomplete picture book biography of Oprah Winfrey. A short author's note in the front of the book briefly menText: 2 stars Illustrations: 3 stars
Very incomplete picture book biography of Oprah Winfrey. A short author's note in the front of the book briefly mentions Oprah's accomplishments, but the body text stops while she is still a child, daydreaming about success. There is no discussion of her hard work or how she has achieved so much. No bibliography. ...more
This graphic novel came highly recommended to me, but it really doesn't work well for me. The narrative is interesting at timText: 3 stars Art: 3 stars
This graphic novel came highly recommended to me, but it really doesn't work well for me. The narrative is interesting at times, but disjointed and frequently interrupted with modern information that provides evidence of the far-reaching effects of the Curies' research. While these asides are also interesting, they are lengthy and disorienting, jumping ahead in time. Furthermore, there isn't anything to signify the beginning or end of the supplemental material.
Overall, it's a jarring experience for the reader, not knowing what you will encounter on any given page. This might be an interesting creative encounter if the material selected for the book was more molecular, able to be broken down into atom-sized pieces that can stand alone, but also create something more when combined. But on the cover we are promised "A Tale of Love and Fallout" and it's rather challenging to piece together the story, or any continuous tale, from within this mosaic-type structure.
The art isn't really my thing either. Some of the illustrations are terrific, but (like the text) the style is very inconsistent from page to page.
This isn't actually a graphic novel, given the absence of sequential art on any of the pages. It's essentially a picture book, with an illustration on each page and accompanying text on most pages. But our society seems to think that it is only appropriate for children to read picture books. This, people, is a 200-pg picture book for adults. Since the American publishing industry lacks that category, we incorrectly call this a graphic novel. If you found this a challenging read, don't let that discourage you from reading other graphic novels. ...more
Picture book biography of photographer Dorothea Lange. Text is choppy and has some holes. Despite the style of dresText: 3 stars Illustrations: 3 stars
Picture book biography of photographer Dorothea Lange. Text is choppy and has some holes. Despite the style of dress and old-fashioned camera, the illustrations feel too modern for the historical setting. Informative author's note in the back of the book with a few of Dorothea Lange's most famous photographs included. No bibliography. ...more
Children's biography of children's author Dr. Seuss. Lively text is full of interesting details and relevant anecdotes that really bring the informatiChildren's biography of children's author Dr. Seuss. Lively text is full of interesting details and relevant anecdotes that really bring the information to life. Engaging black and white illustrations. Some sidebars explain concepts that may be unfamiliar to children, such as Prohibition and WWII Isolationism. Includes a bibliography and two side-by-side timelines, one focuses on Dr. Seuss's life and the other features events in the larger world. Part of the Who Was/Is series. Suitable for upper elementary and middle school students. ...more
Short children's biography of the surrealist painter Rene Magritte. The brief text highlights interesting and relevant facts. Many good-sized color reShort children's biography of the surrealist painter Rene Magritte. The brief text highlights interesting and relevant facts. Many good-sized color reproductions of his art. Very good introduction to this artist, suitable for elementary school children. No back matter. ...more
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