Jacob Lawrence (Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists) [Library Binding]

Mike Venezia (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1999 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists

Presents a biography of Jacob Lawrence

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 2-4-A brief, conversational biography of the contemporary African-American artist. The print is large; the layout is uncluttered. Black-and-white photographs are interspersed throughout the text, along with full-color reproductions of the artist's work and Venezia's cartoons with fictionalized dialogue balloons. The text concentrates on aspects of Lawrence's life that affected his art. Mindful of his audience, Venezia handles parts of the story in a truthful but gentle manner. For example, the text states that "[Lawrence] knew that people who didn't know about their history had no way of feeling proud of their past or of themselves" to explain the artist's motivation in painting historical figures who fought against slavery. In his discussion of The Migration Series, Venezia states, "Although slavery had ended years before, many black people were still treated badly in the South." Lawrence's successful treatment for depression is mentioned, although his illness is not named. The excellent-quality reproductions do a great deal to enhance and extend the text. Lawrence's paintings have appeared in his The Great Migration (HarperCollins, 1993) and Harriet and the Promised Land (S & S, 1993), Walter Dean Myers's Toussaint L'Ouverture (S & S, 1996), and Gwen Everett's John Brown: One Man against Slavery (Rizzoli, 1993), which would all be excellent resources to use with this title. John Duggleby's well-executed Story Painter: The Life of Jacob Lawrence (Chronicle, 1998) goes into more detail and is intended for a slightly older audience.-Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA

Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Mike Venezia is the author of several nonfiction books for children.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Library Binding: 32 pages
• Publisher: Children's Press (CT) (September 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0516210122
• ISBN-13: 978-0516210124
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 8.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #453,011 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mike Venezia is the author of several nonfiction books for children from the Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists series. Books

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Jacob Lawrence (Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists), March 10, 2007

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I. M. Ippolito (Valley Stream, New York United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Jacob Lawrence (Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists) (Paperback)

These books are a great introduction to the lives and works of famous artists. My daughters and I have enjoyed Mike Venezia's books on Frida Kahlo, Picasso, Mary Cassatt, Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Klee, and Georgia Okeefe. My daughters particularly like the cartoon characters and dialogue that supplement the text. Reading Jacob Lawrence led to a discussion about African American history and the lives of Harriet Tubman and John Brown, both subjects of Lawrence's work. There is a spelling error in this book: "heroes" is spelled "heros."