The Art of Reading: Forty Illustrators Celebrate RIF's 40th Anniversary [Hardcover]

Reading Is Fundamental (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 7 and up | Grade Level: 2 and up

For forty years, the nonprofit literacy organization Reading Is Fundamental has been putting books into the hands of children across America. To commemorate its fortieth anniversary, it has brought together forty of the most celebrated children’s book illustrators working today and asked them each to re-imagine a classic book from their childhood. The result is a collection of beautiful and captivating images and insightful essays that remind us how a child’s early experiences with books can be powerful and lasting—and can help to create writers and artists.This gift book includes a foreword by Leonard Marcus, noted historian, author, and critic in the field of children’s literature.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 3 Up–Forty well-known, well-loved children's book illustrators share memories of a book (and even a comic book) seminal to their development as readers and artists, and offer accompanying pieces of art–re-imagined from those books. From its cozy cover image (created by the late Fred Marcellino) of a cat and mouse companionably enthralled by the open book on which they perch, to the satisfying thumbnail biographies appended, this is a lovingly conceived, cohesive, and distinctively designed treasure. Each spread is dedicated to one of the contributors; half of it is occupied by an art piece, and half by the illustrator's reminiscence, a sidebar featuring a cameo photo-portrait of the artist, and a vividly reproduced image of the cover of the book (or, in Peter Sis's case, of the etching) that so captured the imagination and sparked the flame of creativity. Most of the art was specially created for this volume. Leonard S. Marcus's insightful and affecting foreword sets just the right anticipatory tone for readers who will be treated to spectacular pictures and often-moving personal statements. In an introductory note, Reading Is Fundamental President and CEO Carol H. Rasco says this is a book about the ability of children's literature to change lives and open hearts. She is so right. This tribute is a thing of beauty and a joy for anyone whose life has ever been electrified by the experience of a book.–Kathy Krasniewicz, Perrot Library, Old Greenwich, CT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 7-10. To commemorate Reading is Fundamental's 40th anniversary, the nonprofit literary organization asked each of 40 contemporary children's book illustrators to write about a children's book that served as an inspiration and then to re-imagine it in an illustration. For David Diaz the book was S. E. Hinton's The Outsiders. In his essay, he talks about getting "myself out of the way so that I can bring [the characters] to life with my brush," which he does expertly in his subdued yet compelling painting of individuals packed closely together, each one alone. For Steven Kellogg, the book was Black Beauty. For Yumi Heo, it was a collection of Korean folktales. Some comments seem too heavily inspirational; the artists are obviously better at what they do than how they talk about it. But this large, handsomely designed volume will be a great introduction to artists for adults in children's literature classes and also for older kids looking back at how they got turned on to books. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Juvenile; 1st edition (August 18, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525474846
• ISBN-13: 978-0525474845
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 10 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #981,269 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The power of art in the early "reading" experience, October 3, 2008

By 

Judy K. Polhemus "Book Collector" (Louisiana) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Art of Reading: Forty Illustrators Celebrate RIF's 40th Anniversary (Hardcover)

Please confess! If you are connected in any way with children's books, then you must have a favorite illustrator! Not one, but several? Yes, me too! In that case, you will love "The Art of Reading" because it holds the imaginative works of forty illustrators. Let me explain...

Reading Is Fundamental, the nation's largest nonprofit literacy organization, invited forty children's illustrator's to re-imagine the art of their favorite children's book. In other words, what book inspired them as children and how would they create one scene from that book? What a clever idea! What wonderful results!

Robert Lawson writes: "No one can possibly tell what tiny detail of a drawing or what seemingly trivial phrase in a story will be the spark that sets off a great flash in the mind of some child, a flash that will leave a glow there until the day he dies." Lawson created "Make Way for Ducklings" and "Blueberries for Sal."

David Wiesner, creator of three Caldecott Medal books, re-imagines one scene from "2001: Space Odyssey" --the obelisk. Instead of appearing in the open as a catalyst for early man's thinking, it becomes a big, black book in one boy's bedroom, a catalyst for Wiesner's connection with books and art. In fact, his explanation of how one movie, one book, then a book explaining the making of the movie from the book is a wonderful piece of writing and inspiration to a new generation of illustrators!

William Joyce, an artist who happens to live in my city of Shreveport, re-imagines a scene from "Where the Wild Things Are," by Maurice Sendak. "I got lost in that book and haven't come out since." His depiction shows a wild-haired little boy standing at the edge of a giant book (or perhaps he is a teeny boy), reading a sentence that says: "That very night in Max's room a forest grew."

Richard Egielski was influenced by the Classic Comics of Moby Dick. His explanation of the complexities and symbolism of Moby Dick and how he missed them with each version of the story is most amusing.

Eric Rohmann loved "Millions of Cats" by Wanda Gag. Jerry Pinkney re-creates a scene from "Little Black Sambo." Mary Azarian's recreation of a scene from "A Girl of Limberlost" is quite beautiful. Mark Teague, who read and reread "The Silver Chair" from the Narnia Chronicles, re-imagines a scene in his fantastic artwork.

"The Art of Reading" is a treasure chest of how artists were influenced by one specific book. For lovers of children's literature, it is a joy to own, to refer to from time to time, perhaps work into a classroom lesson or after reading the original classic to your child, show how the artist would re-imagine that scene.

Perhaps this artwork will become a springboard for a future artist sitting right there in your lap!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An illustrator all-star team shows how readers and artists are born, August 25, 2005

By 

Kevin Fry (Arlington, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Art of Reading: Forty Illustrators Celebrate RIF's 40th Anniversary (Hardcover)

This delightful book is an intriguing -- and inspiring -- tribute to the power of creativity and the joys of discovering both books and art. Forty of the top children's book illustrators in the country were asked by Reading Is Fundamental to "re-imagine" a favorite book from their childhood as a way of celebrating the birth of their personal interest in reading and art. Short statements from the artists accompany the full-page illustrations (almost all of which are original to this book) and demonstrate that there are many ways young people can come to the reading experience.

The essays are a charming window into the childhoods of these artists, but the heart of the book is the illustrations themselves. Every artist brings his or her own sensibility to the task, which makes this a rare side-by-side compendium of children's book illustration styles and creative philosophies. It's a thrill to move from David Wiesner to Raul Colon to Bryan Collier to Jerry Pinkney to Peter Sis to Nina Laden to William Joyce, and on and on. RIF has put together an illustrator all-star team, packed with Caldecott and Coretta Scott King winners and a diverse mixture of established stars and up-and-comers.

This book would be a great addition to any family library and should be placed in every elementary school reading and art classroom and used as a tool to inspire kids, parents, and even teachers. In fact, it would also make a great gift for reading and art teachers, librarians, and anyone who cares about how readers, writers, and artists are born - or anyone who remembers fondly their own early reading experiences.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars **Filled with delights to 'WHET THE APPETITE' **, February 4, 2006

By 

mcHaiku "nmi" (Brown County INDIANA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Art of Reading: Forty Illustrators Celebrate RIF's 40th Anniversary (Hardcover)

Among the delights in this book, "The Art of Reading", are artists respectfully mimicking other artists, sharing memories of favorite books, of authors & illustrators; each one encouraging their audience to read and ENJOY. The cover illustration, by the late influential Fred Marcellino, was chosen for its appropriate subject of cat and mouse cozily reading together!

First, I raced through, looking for my favorite illustrators. Then I would pause often to laugh at someone's adaptation, as for example Paul Zelinsky's wonderfully amusing interpretation of "The Color Kittens" and his delightful essay. 'All bases are covered' in this handsome book: it salutes childhood favorites and teachers who were mentors while exploring a variety of mediums & styles. How different and imaginative are the creations of Lois Ehlert, Raul Colon, David McPhail. Bryan Collier with his layers of art and photo collages inspires the detective in us, trying to figure out the source of materials.

All the artists stir some regret that we do not share their talents, yet we love the trips back to happy lap-times and those exciting years of discovering the meaning of words. RIF (*Reading is Fundamental*), an important non-profit literacy organization, has compiled for their 40th anniversary celebration this elegant gift for all who love to read. Reviewer mcHAIKU 'toasts' all the happy memories forever attached to magical artists such as Wanda Gag, Maurice Sendak and Garth Williams.