An admiring portrait of a gifted singer who didn’t exactly stand back when her illustrious husband stepped on to the public stage.
As Krull puts it, Coretta Scott didn’t just break rules, she broke Rules—taking stands against racist laws and practices, yes, but also refusing to teach at an all-black school after being turned down at an all-white one, removing the word “obey” from her wedding vows, and rejecting her husband’s view that a woman’s place was in the home. She continued his work after his death, but before that, she led him into opposing the Vietnam War and “broadened his scope” to include many human rights issues. She had a voice “like a clear and powerful liquid,” and, according to her sister, as a child she had “an uncontrollable temper.” Similarly, in the co-published Mary Todd Lincoln (illustrated by Elizabeth Baddeley), Lincoln’s future wife is introduced as a demanding, fiercely intelligent “drama queen” who went on to be dubbed “Lady President” by her husband and “hellcat” by one of his male secretaries. In both volumes the illustrators ably depict their subjects from childhood on with features both recognizable and expressive.
Foibles and tragedies receive due acknowledgement, but readers should come away impressed by her uncommon independence of spirit and opinion. (source and reading lists, indexes) (Biography. 9-11)Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-8027-3826-4
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Aug. 12, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2015
Categories: CHILDREN'S BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR
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The rewards of simply taking time to bend down for a closer look are celebrated in this tribute to the great French entomologist.
Seeing as a lad that “every patch of dirt and tangle of weeds buzzed with insects: dazzling beetles, ferocious wasps, sweet-singing crickets, and more,” young Fabre went on to devote a long life to watching common insects rather than just collecting dead specimens as most of his contemporary colleagues did. The distinctive, enduring affection with which he regarded his diminutive subjects regardless of their often savage behavior comes through clearly here, both in Smith’s warm narrative and Ferri’s equally engaging views of the naturalist. He delightedly discovers a shimmering hoplia beetle beneath a leaf, smiles from his sickbed as a handful of hibernating bees revives after his son carries them indoors, and is wonderstruck by an account of how Cerceris wasps paralyze beetles as live food for offspring. (The illustrator has a little fun with viewers by adding a looming insectile shadow as well as close-up views of hovering wasps in this last scene.) Fabre’s many original discoveries and insights won him renown, and though he is largely unknown to nonspecialists today, his nose-to-nose approach to the natural world is well worth commemorating to modern readers.
Long before Yogi Berra said, “You can observe a lot by watching,” Fabre proved it so. (historical note, timeline, author’s note, annotated source list) (Picture book/biography. 9-11)Pub Date: May 12, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4778-2632-4
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2015
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BOOK REVIEW
Readers who have just discovered Anne Shirley of Green Gables and are wondering where she came from will find at least the beginnings of an answer in this fresh, frank picture-book biography. Montgomery comes across as a generous spirit, with both an independent streak and a strong sense of duty. MacLeod sketches both her public and private lives, pointing out real people, places, or incidents that appeared later in her books. She quotes income figures ($12,000 in 1914: as much as the Canadian Prime Minister) and describes, among other details, her youthful infatuation for one man, her secret engagement to another, and, years later, her long struggle to keep her husband's mental illness a secret. On every spread, montages of contemporary photos, portraits, book covers, quotes, memorabilia, manuscript pages, reviews, and film stills add a visual backdrop to this engaging glimpse of Canada's most famous author. A sketched figure of Maud points to important opinions or pieces of information. Montgomery's other books get a glance too, and there is a complete list at the end, along with lists of sites to visit, both in Canada and on the Web. A terrific format for an appealing subject. (index) (Biography. 9-11)
Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 1-55074-487-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2001
Categories: CHILDREN'S BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR
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