PIPPO THE FOOL written by Tracey E. Fern and illustrated by Pau Estrada is a picture book of historical fiction set in 15th Century Florence about the design and the construction of the great dome atop the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and about the genius of Filippo Brunelleschi.

Pippo, a shortened version of Filippo, is the underdog in a contest run by the city fathers to find the best artist and the best design for this dome. The consuming problem was how to design such a dome and actually get it constructed and maintained without it being crushed by its own weight, destroying the cathedral or requiring unsightly supportive columns and scaffolding. Thinking quietly and out of the box, Pippo designs a dome in a dome. The smaller circular dome on the inside, as the text relates, supports the grand eight-sided dome on the outside. He designs an interlocking pattern of blocks and chains to hold the two domes together on the inside and 72 holes through which the wind can pass on the outside. Much of the fun of the telling is found in the self-assurance and the hard work of Pippo in contrast to the bravado of other artists.

Pippo wins the contest, gets the contract and spends the next 16 years building the grand dome which was completed in 1436----an artistic and engineering feat considered to be Brunelleschi’s architectural masterpiece.

Pau Estrada’s illustrations are drawn with humor and skill for capturing the flair of Florence in the 1400s with its color palette of rich opaque browns, burnt gold and dark ruby reds. Every picture is full of informing details and features the incredibly lively nature of the townspeople. Potters, weavers, monks, market women, children and trades people populate the illustrations and are shown talking, laughing, whispering, pointing, shouting and communicating in all ways. They are a dramatic lot. Artists Ghiberti and Donatello are also portrayed. Animals provide playful details especially the cats. The illustrator also points out in his Notes that he has pulled details from other artists such as a monk and donkey from Giotto, a wild boar from Ghirlandaio and a monkey from Masaccio.

PIPPO THE FOOL written by Tracey E. Fern and illustrated by Pau Estrada is ideal for ages 8-12 (Charlesbridge , 2009).

This is Sue Ann Martin for CHILDREN’S BOOKS…THE DEAN’S LIST.

Discussion Questions for Pippo the Fool

Marla Frazee’s A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever is the humorously exaggerated tale of young James who accompanies his friend Eamon to his grandparents, Bill and Pam, in their house at the beach for “a week of nature camp.”  James, who has never been away from home, brings an enormous number of belongings to keep him company, especially as he watches his mother drive away with a sense of sadness.

The boys find Pete’s idea of “nature camp” not quite as active as they had planned, especially as he tries to educate them regularly with tales of the trips he and Pam have taken to many exotic parts of the world.  And Pam balances his educational efforts with enormous amounts of unhealthy food which gives the boys lots of sugar-powered energy which they burn off adventuring in their basement bedroom.  By the end of “nature camp,” James and Eamon, or “Jamon” as they have now bonded, reflect on what a great success it has been—more of a “Sit-Around Camp” than a go outside and exercise camp.  And as a final activity they complete a surprise for Bill whose favorite trip was to Antarctica where he loved the penguins.  Using shells they create an Antarctic scene for Bill to enjoy.

The boys leave with hopes of a reunion at “nature camp” next summer, complete with secret hand shake and a special penguin walk.  A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever offers an engaging text and illustrations that garnered one of this year’s Caldecott Honor medals.  It will hold the attention of children aged six through nine.

Marla Frazee, author and illustrator.  A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever.  New York: Harcourt, 2008.

Discussion Questions for A Couple of Boys Have the Best Weekend Ever

Amiri and Odette, A Love Story written by Walter Dean Myers and illustrated by Javaka Steptoe is a vibrant retelling of the Sawn Lake ballet set on and around the streets outside the inner city’s Swan Lake Projects. Walter Dean Myers writes his poem with heightened speech, strong beats, full throttled vowels, abrupt declarations and soft whispering secrets. The author says in his Forward remarks comparing the ballet ‘s tensions to what he has written, “ I asked myself if there were modern dangers to young people similar to the magic spells of folklore. The answer, of course, was a resounding yes, and I began to craft a modern urban retelling of the Swan Lake ballet.”

Walter Dean Myers’ poem, in four acts, begins with a foreboding worry for a mother to her son. Amiri’s mother tells him he needs to settle down and get married before it is too late and the mean streets claim him. He hears her words but turns his energy toward the park near the projects where he hones his skills that fuel his basketball dreams. But this night is different. This night he sees what the poem describes as “ girl shadows dancing and one who is glancing.” Her name is Odette. Prince Amiri falls in love. But, Odette lives in the darkness of an awful shadow. And thus, the tender and volatile struggle for their happiness begins.

Artist Javaka Steptoe has illustrated this marvelous poem by creating striking images with acrylic paints on slabs of asphalt. The paintings are accentuated in collage style with textures and shapes from the streets such as newspapers and pieces of 14k jewelry .The varying type sizes used in the text allow the story to speak loudly and to the heart. Steptoe colors the text in bold splashes of orange, red, turquoise, white and purple on earthy black , brown and dark grey-blue backgrounds.

Together the award winning artist and the award winning writer shape the narrative and brilliantly tell this story of love over evil and hope over despair. Amiri and Odette is a skillful braiding of the enduring characteristics of the oral tradition with the sensual power of the visual arts.

Amiri and Odette, A Love Story written by Walter Dean Myers and illustrated by Javaka Steptoe is ideal for youth ages 12 years and up  (Scholastic Press, 2009).

This is Sue Ann Martin for Children’s Books… The Dean’s List

Discussion Questions for Amiri and Odette

Eric Rohmann’s My Friend Rabbit is the delightful story, told in simple language with bright, colorful illustrations, of the mishaps that seem to follow Rabbit wherever he goes.  His friend Mouse is the sympathetic narrator who assures us that Rabbit means well.  “But whatever he does, wherever he goes, trouble follows.”  Rabbit is, however, always full of clever ideas—ways sure to solve his messes.

This story focuses on Rabbit’s efforts to retrieve Mouse’s brand-new airplane that Rabbit has flown high into a tree.  Using his powers of persuasiveness, Rabbit collects an unusual assortment of animals, stacking them up in a manner reminiscent of the Bremen Town Musicians.  Encouraging young readers and listeners to actually take hold of the book and turn it around lengthwise to see the animals in this immense stack, Rohmann genuinely engages his audience.  While a tumble does result, the plane is ultimately recovered.  In closing, Mouse reminds us that Rabbit “means well,” and, above all, “he is my friend.”

Eric Rohmann’s uncomplicated text and Caldecott Award-winning illustrations for My Friend Rabbit have combined to provide a simple story of trust and friendship that are sure to be enjoyed over and over again by four to eight year olds.

Eric Rohmann.  My Friend Rabbit.  Brookfield, CT:  Roaring Brook Press, 2002.

Discussion Questions for My Friend Rabbit

Tonya Bolden’s Maritcha: A Nineteenth-Century American Girl is based on the actual memoir of Maritcha Rémond Lyon (1848-1929), as well as additional supporting documentation, to provide a rich portrait of this free black young girl in New York City at a time when “free blacks had few rights and rare respect.”

As she enters adolescence, Maritcha’s family must flee New York, which is in turmoil with Civil War draft rioting in which her own home had been badly damaged.  Settled into nearby Rhode Island, however, they are chagrined to learn that they must actually petition the state legislature to allow her to attend high school as a free black.  She does attend, graduating in 1869 to become a teacher and later an assistant principal in New York until her retirement in 1918.

This is a beautifully crafted book.  Bolden and her editor decided against using illustrations by a modern artist because “photographs and keepsakes” from Maritcha’s life were available for inclusion.  As she noted, “not to draw on these holdings would be a missed opportunity to bring historical artifacts into wider view.”  They also focused the text on Maritcha’s youth, although her career as an educator spanned nearly fifty years, because it was her youth that would speak to her pre-adolescent readership.  Both decisions were perfect in targeting this book for its intended fourth through sixth grade audience.  While girls may be more immediately drawn to her story, Tonya Bolden’s non-fiction compilation of the life of Maritcha: A Nineteenth-Century American Girl can also assist boys in understanding our nation’s history through the eyes of a free black girl determined to succeed.

This is Karen Adams for Children’s Books… The Dean’s List

Discussion Questions for Maritcha: A Nineteenth-Century American Girl

HEART TO HEART is divided into four sections-----Stories, Voices, Impressions and Expressions. Thomas Hart Benton’s oil painting “Down by the Riverside” inspires Dave Etter to write a description of the family depicted.  He gives incredible depth to the texture of Benton’s tableau by giving the figures names, intentions and familial backgrounds.  David Harrison’s poem “It’s Me” is a delightful interpretation of Andy Warhol’s paint and silkscreen ink work entitled “Marilyn Diptych”.  The poet allows Marilyn Monroe to shout out from multiple images of her face as if to speak from every corner of the canvas.  Writer Jane Yolen gives a rich read to Grant Wood’s famous painting “American Gothic”.  She instructs the observer to look behind the eyes of the two stoic and controlled figures to find their stories. Roy Lichtenstein’s oil “Banana and Grapefruit #3” is the motivation for Deborah Pope to explore the bright yellow image from every sensory pathway.  This figurative poem is written in pairs of full rhyme and sound play.

This is an exquisitely produced book that gives young people the opportunity to experience the special products that can result from the dialogue of artists when they speak across creative forms.  Each drawing, painting, collage, sculpture and photograph finds a unique poetic response.  This book has won honor status from the Michael Printz Award administered by the American Library Association.

HEART TO HEART: New Poems inspired by 20th Century American Art edited by Jan Greenberg is ideal for young people 10 years of age and up (published by Harry N. Abrams, 2001).

This is Sue Ann Martin for Children’s Books. . .The Dean’s List

Discussion Questions for Heart to Heart