From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 3 - As in
Katie and the Sunflowers (2001) and
Katie and the Mona Lisa (1999, both Scholastic), Mayhew continues his picture-book explorations of masterpieces with this foray into the world of the Pointillists. This time, his protagonist cools off on a hot day at the museum by climbing into Georges Seurat's
Bathers at Asnières. As she rests on the edge of the frame, it tilts, spilling water into the gallery. When the child hops over into
Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte and invites a young girl to play with her in the gallery's rising water, the other figures are quick to follow. The climax features the footsteps of a guard and a last-minute save by the magic of the gentleman from Paul Signac's
Portrait of Felix Feneon. While the paintings Mayhew combines cannot actually be found in a single museum, the juxtaposition allows him to introduce famous examples of Pointillism. Acknowledgements and brief biographical notes clarify locations and present basic facts about the artists. Although Mayhew's copies are brighter and less subtle than the originals, children will get the point. The book will serve as a lighthearted introduction or follow-up to Robert Burleigh's fascinating and interactive presentation of both the artist and his controversial piece in
Seurat and La Grande Jatte (Abrams, 2004).
- Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Gr. 1-3. One summer day, Katie and her grandmother head for the art museum, but the gallery is uncomfortably warm. When Katie spies Georges Seurat's
Bathers at Asnieres, the painting is so vivid that she can almost feel the breeze and hear the river, "so she climb[s] over the frame and inside the picture." As Grandma snoozes, Katie dons her swimsuit and splashes into the river. When water starts pouring out of the painting into the gallery, the dual realities merge quite--fluidly. Katie (and Jacques from
Bathers) jump in and out of famous pointillist paintings until they have to borrow a boat from Seurat's
Port of Honfleur. In the end, the magician from Paul Signac's
Portrait of Felix Feneon restores order just as the guard comes around the bend. The watercolor artwork is in a simple impressionistic style. A note about the pointillists Georges Seurat, Paul Signac, and Camille Pissarro closes another of Mayhew's playful, imaginative celebrations of the happy fusion of life and art.
Karin SnelsonCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
