Customer Reviews

Painting the Wind (Joanna Cotler Books)

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A young boy that lives on an island loves to paint, but he is frustrated because he has never been able to paint the wind. In the summer, many artists come to the island to paint. The young boy paints with the artists and learns a great deal. At the end of one summer, he realizes that he has captured the wind on canvas.

Painting the wind is more of a picture book than a full-scale story. The pictures are depicted as paintings, and follow after the styles of the various artists encountered by the narrator - a young boy who himself loves to paint.

I would have liked to have seen a few more pictures showing the young boy's artistic attempts, and I had a few questions about how the boy became so well acquainted with these particular artists that they allowed him to work side-by-side with them -- especially the landscape artist who doesn't take his own children with him when he paints.

A lovely touch is the way the narrator describes the artists' relationship with their dogs. The dogs are sometimes featured in the paintings, and in one instance help a woman being painted to relax and smile.

At the end, the young artist has accomplished his own personal goal - of painting the wind, and he has also participated in the island art show.

Recommended for children who like stories about art.

Sweet story about a boy who learns his art by watching different artists. He learns how to paint the wind by showing movement in his art. Good read aloud for elementary grades.