Genre 1: Pass It Down
Marcus, Leonard S. 2007. Pass It Down: Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark. New York: Walker & Company.
Plot Summary
Marcus introduces us to five illustrious families instrumental in producing some of our most endearing picture books. Each chapter spotlights a different family: The Crews and Jonas family, the Hurd family, the Myers family, the Pinkney family, and the Rockwell family.
Critical Analysis
Leonard Marcus introduces readers to the back stories of five of the most famous picture-book families in his book Pass It Down:Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark. Not only do we get an indepth look at how these families evolved, but readers are treated to a glimpse into the picture book industry.
From family photos to excerpts from the picture books to the drawing process to letters from editors, Marcus shows us the journey each of these authors and artists traveled to become the legendary families we now know.
In his book, Marcus reveals the way many of our beloved picture books came into being. We see the influence of family on our most important decisions. These families show us that many times, even when we try to fight it, we become very close copies of our parents.
It is interesting to note that many of the children in these families, though interested in art, did not necessarily strive to become picture-book illustrators. These children first studied animation, art history, or photography before realizing the artist joy and satisfaction provided by illustrating picture books.
The only disappointment is the condensed list of published works by each family, which omits those titles mentioned in the book. It seems odd that Marcus could list books from the Hurd family and not list Goodnight, Moon, or include a list of books from the Crews family without listing Freight Train. Perhaps Marcus omitted these titles from his bibliographical section because he speaks of them in the body of the book, but why then did he list others which were discussed in the book such as Walter Dean and Christopher Myers' Brown Angels?
Review Excerpts
School Library Journal:
"Marcus carefully makes the point that, although perhaps blessed with some inherited talent and encouraged by their parents, all of the children pursued their art with diligence and have emerged with their own unique styles."
A Kirkus starred review:
"Filled with intriguing tidbits, this is an outstanding work about the connections between parents and children, editors and artists and readers and writers."
Connections
Pass It Down would be a beneficial book for librarians and teachers doing an author/illustrator study, but also for art teachers teaching different types of illustration media or careers in the field of book illustration.
Related Books
Side by Side: Five Favorite Picture-Book Teams Go to Work by Leonard S. Marcus
A Caldecott Celebration: Seven Artists and their Paths to the Caldecott Medal by Leonard S. Marcus
Book cover art from www.librarything.com
Marcus, Leonard S. 2007. Pass It Down: Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark. New York: Walker & Company.
Plot Summary
Marcus introduces us to five illustrious families instrumental in producing some of our most endearing picture books. Each chapter spotlights a different family: The Crews and Jonas family, the Hurd family, the Myers family, the Pinkney family, and the Rockwell family.
Critical Analysis
Leonard Marcus introduces readers to the back stories of five of the most famous picture-book families in his book Pass It Down:Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark. Not only do we get an indepth look at how these families evolved, but readers are treated to a glimpse into the picture book industry.
From family photos to excerpts from the picture books to the drawing process to letters from editors, Marcus shows us the journey each of these authors and artists traveled to become the legendary families we now know.
In his book, Marcus reveals the way many of our beloved picture books came into being. We see the influence of family on our most important decisions. These families show us that many times, even when we try to fight it, we become very close copies of our parents.
It is interesting to note that many of the children in these families, though interested in art, did not necessarily strive to become picture-book illustrators. These children first studied animation, art history, or photography before realizing the artist joy and satisfaction provided by illustrating picture books.
The only disappointment is the condensed list of published works by each family, which omits those titles mentioned in the book. It seems odd that Marcus could list books from the Hurd family and not list Goodnight, Moon, or include a list of books from the Crews family without listing Freight Train. Perhaps Marcus omitted these titles from his bibliographical section because he speaks of them in the body of the book, but why then did he list others which were discussed in the book such as Walter Dean and Christopher Myers' Brown Angels?
Review Excerpts
School Library Journal:
"Marcus carefully makes the point that, although perhaps blessed with some inherited talent and encouraged by their parents, all of the children pursued their art with diligence and have emerged with their own unique styles."
A Kirkus starred review:
"Filled with intriguing tidbits, this is an outstanding work about the connections between parents and children, editors and artists and readers and writers."
Connections
Pass It Down would be a beneficial book for librarians and teachers doing an author/illustrator study, but also for art teachers teaching different types of illustration media or careers in the field of book illustration.
Related Books
Side by Side: Five Favorite Picture-Book Teams Go to Work by Leonard S. Marcus
A Caldecott Celebration: Seven Artists and their Paths to the Caldecott Medal by Leonard S. Marcus
Book cover art from www.librarything.com
I love that you included the book covers in your reviews! Your blog looks great!
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