Starry Messenger (1997 Caldecott Honor Book) [Hardcover]

Peter Sís (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up | Series: Caldecott Honor Book

"If they had seen what we see, they would have judged as we judge." -- Galileo Galilei

In every age there are courageous people who break with tradition to explore new ideas and challenge accepted truths. Galileo Galilei was just such a man--a genius--and the first to turn the telescope to the skies to map the heavens. In doing so, he offered objective evidence that the earth was not the fixed center of the universe but that it and all the other planets revolved around the sun. Galileo kept careful notes and made beautiful drawings of all that he observed. Through his telescope he brought the starts down to earth for everyone to see.

By changing the way people saw the galaxy, Galileo was also changing the way they saw themselves and their place in the universe. This was very exciting, but to some to some it was deeply disturbing. Galileo has upset the harmonious view of heaven and earth that had been accepted since ancient times. He had turned the world upside down.

In this amazing new book, Peter Sís employs the artist's lens to give us an extraordinary view of the life of Galileo Galilei. Sís tells his story in language as simple as a fairy tale, in pictures as rich and tightly woven as a tapestry, and in Galileo's own words, written more than 350 years ago and still resonant with truth.

 

Starry Messenger is a 1997 Caldecott Honor Book.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The story of Galileo is at once inspiring and troubling. The brilliant astronomer was a celebrated scientist who was showered with honors and patronage until his greatest discovery--that the earth circled the sun rather than the other way around--proved to be too much of a threat to prevailing orthodoxy. Peter Sis, author of the wonderful children's book Follow the Dream: The Story of Christopher Columbus, tells Galileo's tale for children ages 8 and older. A brilliant and sophisticated illustrator and a sensitive storyteller, he traces Galileo's life from childhood to his final days as a prisoner of the church. (Click to see a sample spread. © 1996 by Peter Sis. Reprinted by permission of the publisher, Farrar, Straus and Giroux.) (Ages 8 and older)

From Publishers Weekly

Extraordinary pictures light up this tribute to Galileo, telling the story of his discoveries, rise to prominence and excoriation by the Church. Sis (Follow the Dream), an experienced and sophisticated chronicler of history's visionaries, outdoes himself with his illustrations. Detailed and delicate, ingeniously conceived, his paintings convey abstractions with an immediate impact. The artist expresses the simultaneous wonder and prevision of Galileo's celestial observations, for example, in a luminous multipaneled composition: in the center, Galileo trains his telescope on the moon; surrounding panels replicate Galileo's notes about and sketches of the lunar surface. Other paintings take inspiration from contemporaneous maps and treatises; still others borrow historical imagery to convey the loneliness of the censored scientist. Handwritten passages from Galileo's own works embellish the pages and supply information missing from the text. Even with the powerful art, however, this volume does not open up Galileo's story to the uninitiated: the brief text oversimplifies the issues, even for a picture book, and seems to presume the reader's awareness of the historical significance of Galileo's struggles. While the book's usefulness may be limited, its strengths are not: it is a book with deep if not broad appeal. Ages 6-up.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); 1st edition (October 31, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374371911
• ISBN-13: 978-0374371913
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 9.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #144,717 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #87 in Books > Children's Books > Biographies > Science & Technology

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars More Eye Candy than Biography, September 29, 2001

By 

Charles Flemming (Fort Worth) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Starry Messenger (1997 Caldecott Honor Book) (Hardcover)

While, as an artist, I appreciate artfully illustrated children's books (and this is one), I find myself swimming against the tide in evaluating Starry Messenger by Peter Sis. It doesn't really illuminate Galileo's life as much as use him as the launching point for an incredible artistic riff. While the illustrations are exquisite, they render the text (written on a very simple second grade level) almost superfluous. Indeed, half the text is in an almost unreadable "Handwriting" typeface, very small, sometimes twisted around. I kept wondering what second grader could even read the thing.

The content of the readable text is, from my perspective anyway, very simplistic, something you would read aloud to a preschooler. And it doesn't tell much about Galileo.

If you're looking for a good juvenile biography of Galileo, and not a coffee table book for children (or the Caldecott people!),I'd recommend Leonard Everett Fisher's much better written book on the same subject. Galileo deserves better than this.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars May be more for adults than children?, March 1, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Starry Messenger (1997 Caldecott Honor Book) (Hardcover)

Although the illustrations are delightful and fun to explore I was disappointed with the book. I bought it to give to my 7 year old grand daughter and I have not givent it to her yet. I feel this is a book written for someone who already knows a lot about Gallileo. Those who already know a lot will enjoy the illustrations, those who need to learn will miss the message.

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect In Every Single Way!, June 18, 2000

By 

Frank Murphy - See all my reviews

This review is from: Starry Messenger (1997 Caldecott Honor Book) (Hardcover)

This is my favorite picture book! It truly is perfect in every way! Reads aloud well and is great to read over and over again! I attached a magnifying glass with a ribbon to some copies in my class, so kids can study the intricate details in the magnificent illustrations and the (extra) tiny writing along the pages! PERFECT!