From School Library Journal
These 14 chapters were originally presented at the annual Virginia Hamilton Conference at Kent State University. The book opens with an interview with Hamilton conducted by the editors. In the chapters that follow, nine illustrators--including Floyd Cooper, Pat Cummings, Vera Williams, and Patricia Polacco--talk about how ethnicity influences the way they approach their work. The role of multicultural illustration is analyzed by book editor Dianne Hess, writer Opal Moore, and librarians Sue Nespeca and Maureen White. The book has few illustrations--a major drawback in a title about illustration. Moreover, all illustrations are in black and white--with no color reproductions at all. Except for the bibliography, the four appendices provide unnecessary information about the conference itself. There is collective substance in these articles, but since the book comprises the comments of so many people, anyone researching the topic will have to sift through it to find what they want.
Julie Cummins, New York Public Library
Copyright 1998 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
