Painting the Wind [Hardcover]

Patricia & Emily MacLachlan (Author), Katy Schneider (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

What I have waited for all year
long happens. Summer is here.

On an island, surrounded by water and light, a young boy waits for the sun to shine, and for his friends, the painters, to return: The landscape painter and the painter of flowers. The painter of still lifes and the painter of faces. They all come to the island to paint when the days are long and their dogs can run free. The young boy watches and learns. This summer he will try to do what he has never done before. He will try to paint the wind.

Newbery Medal-winning and bestselling author Patricia MacLachlan teams up with her daughter Emily for their first collaboration. Their delicate yet evocative prose is brought to life by the exquisite paintings of artist Katy Schneider. Painting the Wind is a beautiful story about holding on to those perfect moments that only summer in a place that you love can offer.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-4-A budding artist waits for the return of the summer painters to his island, and one by one they arrive, each with the tools of their trade and a dog. The young narrator spends time with each one-the flower painter, the painter of portraits, still-life painter, and the landscape painter-observing, learning, and finally challenging himself to paint the wind. The prose flows with the relaxed rhythms of summer. Evocative descriptions bring life and individuality to each artist. One "loves the names of his paints" like Terracotta and Scarlet Lake, another loves faces, a third artist loves "sea glass" and "jingle shells," and the last loves the moon. All of them observe the world around them with awe. Schneider's masterful paintings are light-splashed gems, and her dog portraits are particularly appealing. From cover to cover, this is a celebration of art and an amazing marriage of text and illustration.
Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WI
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

K-Gr. 3. It's summer, and the artists have returned to the island. The young narrator, a painter himself, has been waiting for their arrival. In this quietly told book, the boy recounts how each of four painters--an artist who paints flowers, a portraitist, a still-life painter, and a landscape artist--paint the same island. By observing each artist closely, the boy hopes to discover how to paint the wind. At the end of summer, the artworks, including the boy's picture of trees bending to the wind, are displayed. Perspective plays an underlying role throughout, both in Schneider's seaside backdrops and in her individual artists' points of view and works. Adding a droll touch is each artist's sidekick dog, with a personality as distinctive as its owner's art. The gentle prose pairs well with handsome artwork that evokes warm, strong sensory impressions through a combination of thick brushwork, texture, and a vibrant color palette. This first collaboration between Patricia MacLachlan and her daughter, Emily, gets to the heart of creativity in a way children will understand. Julie Cummins
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1 edition (April 29, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060297980
• ISBN-13: 978-0060297985
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 11.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,205,952 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Patricia MacLachlan was born on the prairie, and to this day carries a small bag of prairie dirt with her wherever she goes to remind her of what she knew first. She is the author of many well-loved novels and picture books, including Sarah, Plain and Tall, winner of the Newbery Medal; its sequels, Skylark and Caleb's Story; and Three Names, illustrated by Mike Wimmer. She lives in western Massachusetts.

In Her Own Words..."One thing I've learned with age and parenting is that life comes in circles. Recently, I was having a bad time writing. I felt disconnected. I had moved to a new home and didn't feel grounded. The house, the land was unfamiliar to me. There was no garden yet. Why had I sold my old comfortable 1793 home? The one with the snakes in the basement, mice everywhere, no closets. I would miss the cold winter air that came in through the electrical sockets."

"I had to go this day to talk to a fourth-grade class, and I banged around the house, complaining. Hard to believe, since I am so mild mannered and pleasant, isn't it? What did I have to say to them? I thought what I always think when I enter a room of children. What do I know?"

"I plunged down the hillside and into town, where a group of fourth-grade children waited for me in the library, freshly scrubbed, expectant. Should I be surprised that what usually happens did so? We began to talk about place, our living landscapes. And I showed them my little bag of prairie dirt from where I was born. Quite simply, we never got off the subject of place. Should I have been so surprised that these young children were so concerned with place, or with the lack of it, their displacement? Five children were foster children, disconnected from their homes. One little boy's house had burned down, everything gone. 'Photographs, too,' he said sadly. Another told me that he was moving the next day to place he'd never been. I turned and saw the librarian, tears coming down her face."

"'You know,' I said. 'Maybe I should take this bag of prairie dirt and toss it into my new yard. I'll never live on the prairie again. I live here now. The two places could mix together that way!' 'No!' cried a boy from the back. 'Maybe the prairie dirt will blow away!' And then a little girl raised her hand. 'I think you should put that prairie dirt in a glass bowl in your window so that when you write you can see it all the time. So you can always see what you knew first.'"

"When I left the library, I went home to write. What You Know First owes much to the children of the Jackson Street School: the ones who love place and will never leave it, the ones who lost everything and have to begin again. I hope for them life comes in circles, too."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a beautiful book..., September 2, 2003

By 

Gloria Jones (Eden Prairie, MN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Painting the Wind (Hardcover)

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.

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting tale with wonderful illustrations, October 16, 2009

By 

B. Dawson (New York) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Painting the Wind (Joanna Cotler Books) (Paperback)

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.

5.0 out of 5 stars Artist's Delight, May 15, 2009

By 

Jay Bee (USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Painting the Wind (Joanna Cotler Books) (Paperback)

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.