Sunflower Island [Hardcover]

Carol Greene (Author), Leonard Jenkins (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 4, 1999 | Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

A young girl sees a sidewheeler run aground and over many years describes how the river makes the remains of the wreck into an island and then washes it away again. Based on a true story.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Through her poetic reflection on the fate of an old river boat, Greene (The Golden Locket) testifies to the enduring legacy of stories passed down through generations. Inspired by a boat that sank in the Wabash River in 1865, the tale describes the sinking of the Sunflower one winter's night. Young Polly witnesses the event from her window and watches the boat's transformation over the years into an island. Greene's lyrical description of this process calls to mind the creation of a delicate collage: "Then the river brought gifts/ to the Sunflower?/ seeds, driftwood,/ and tiny floating islands." Later, Polly tells her own daughter of Sunflower Island's origins; by the book's end, when the island has disintegrated, and the river reveals the bare bones of the Sunflower, many generations have heard Polly's tale. Jenkins's (If I Only Had a Horn) acrylic, spray paint and pastel illustrations echo the haunting quality of the prose poem with surreal perspectives (Polly's view of the wreck through an enormous window frame that almost places her in the water) and juxtapositions (the stranded Sunflower seems to hover above the sleepy village). He uses an abstract, collage-like interplay of blocky shapes and unusual color combinations: pastel pink, orange and yellow accent large expanses of russet and forest green. Both text and art create an elegant, harmonious meditation on the art of storytelling.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 2-4-In this picture book, Greene alternates poetic verses with a more straightforward narrative to tell the story of the Sunflower, a side-wheeler boat that runs aground in a shoal and is abandoned. Over the course of many years, the wreck becomes the basis of an island, providing a place to picnic and fish, until a storm sweeps it away, leaving the river to be just a river again. This coupling of styles may prove confusing to children, especially since the story is told in several time layers. As a young girl, Polly sees the wreck and she later relates the events, first to her daughter, then her granddaughter, and finally her great-granddaughter. Jenkins's ethereal pictures, rendered in acrylics, spray paint, and pastels, are in harmony with the nostalgic text, but do little to help children sort out exactly what is happening. Another puzzle: the Sunflower featured opposite the first page of text and on the back jacket has the name Mississippi prominently on its side. An author's note relates that the story is based on a true event that took place in the Wabash River in 1865. Although the concept is intriguing-the timelessness of rivers and the connections of families through generational storytelling-this narrative lacks the drama and pacing necessary to hold children's interest.
Barbara Elleman, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (January 4, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060273267
• ISBN-13: 978-0060273262
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 8.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.5 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,043,446 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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