If... (Getty Trust Publications : J. Paul Getty Museum) [Hardcover]

Sarah Perry (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Getty Trust Publications : J. Paul Getty Museum

In her first book, artist Sarah Perry has created twenty magical watercolors that are an open invitation to the imaginations of children. Beautifully produced in full color, these fantastic images conjure up a world of limitless possibilities where anything can happen: leaves turn into green fish...cats fly about on wings...and butterflies become a little girl's coat of many colors. Children of all ages will enjoy this book, the Getty Museum's first co-publication with the Children's Library Press of Venice, California.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

A diving board to creative wordplay, the fascinating picture book If... offers a surrealistic view of the natural world. The two-page spreads present artful watercolors paired with such strange possibilities as "If zebras had stars and stripes...," "If the moon were square...," and "If worms had wheels...." Although some of the ideas and pictures are whimsical to the point of being downright creepy ("If caterpillars were toothpaste...," "If toes were teeth..."), the hypotheticals will surely inspire flights of fancy for readers of all ages. What could be more appealing for a 5-year-old than imagining the silliest suppositions and seeing them come to life in realistic paintings?

Sculptor Sarah Perry creates a world to make us stop and think. One of her best illustrations depicts a large, hairy warthog with a sparkling crown and the text, "If ugly were beautiful...." With every if idea, the author encourages the kind of mental double take that comes naturally for children. (Ages 4 to 7, and adults, too) --Emilie Coulter

From Publishers Weekly

In her first book for children, Perry, an artist, suggests a series of impossible propositions, then makes each come true in striking if sometimes disturbing paintings. Her text sets up one scenario after another ("If frogs ate rainbows"; "If dogs were mountains") and ends with the suggestion "If this is the end.../ Then dream up some more!" Many concepts are funny ("If zebras had stars and stripes"); many are both intriguing and comic. "If ugly were beautiful," for example, is paired with a painting of a warthog?with warts, bristles, wrinkles and all?wearing a glittering diamond tiara fit for a beauty queen. Other visions are more surrealistic: "If mice were hair" captions a picture of a child's head aswarm with lanky, squirming mice. Elsewhere, a girl in green sunglasses parts her lips to reveal a row of realistically drawn toes; a blue toddler marches off with a green elephant, holding its tail?which closely resembles the child's own. While the artwork is arresting, the premise would be better served with a more supple, varied text and a stronger ending. Ages 3-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 44 pages
• Publisher: J. Paul Getty Museum; 1 edition (November 2, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892363215
• ISBN-13: 978-0892363216
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 8.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #73,808 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome book to expand children's imagination, April 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: If... (Getty Trust Publications : J. Paul Getty Museum) (Hardcover)

I read this book and immediately usd it as a story prompt for my first grade class. They first drew their own If.. pictures then wrote about them.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creative and Fun, February 19, 2002

By 

David S. Curcio "Davesells" (Houston, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: If... (Getty Trust Publications : J. Paul Getty Museum) (Hardcover)

I read this book to my daughter's kindergarten class and they loved it. The pictures are wonderful, but the best part is its imagination. It encourages kids to think in new ways and inspires creative thinking (and hopefully an interest in the arts). I enjoyed it and heartily recommend it.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must-have for Teachers, September 4, 2006

By 

C. Brainerd - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: If... (Getty Trust Publications : J. Paul Getty Museum) (Hardcover)

The best illustrations of any book I've seen in a 30 year teaching career. Got tired of retrieving it from other teachers and ordered five for my best teacher friends and one for kids to have their hands on in the classroom. Children absolutely LOVE this book! I first saw it when a student brought it to school to show me. Back then it had to be ordered from the museum~~and now it's on Amazon!