Review by New York Times Review
WHEN Russell Freedman won the Newbery Medal for his photobiography of Abraham Lincoln in 1988, he rewarded himself with a trip to China. The many nonfiction books he has written since then are devoted primarily to American subjects, but Freedman continues to be fascinated by Asia. He wrote about Confucius in 2002 and now, with the Russian-born illustrator Bagram Ibatoulline, he has produced a splendid new book, "The Adventures of Marco Polo." There are really two subjects in this picture book. Freedman vividly recounts some of the adventures Marco Polo claimed to have had between the time he left Venice, about 1270, with his father and uncle, both merchants, and 1295, when he returned. And Freedman presents the history of the book Marco wrote that told the world about these travels. Audaciously titled "The Description of the World," it "opened the eyes of Europeans to a civilization they had known almost nothing about," Freedman writes. "But many readers continued to regard the book as a fantastic collection of tall tales." Marco Polo always insisted that his stories were true ("I have only told the half of what I saw"), and they are, indeed, extraordinary. He was 6 when his father and uncle first set forth from Venice, intending to find trade in Russia. They returned nine years later - having been delayed by wars and storms, and bringing stories of places no European had ever seen, including, most remarkably, the court of Kublai Khan in Cathay (modern China). After two years at home, the brothers set off again, taking with them Marco, "an energetic youth of 17." In his book Marco described an arduous journey - a trek by camel caravan through Persia, over the towering mountains of the Hindu Kush and across the vast desert of western China called the Taklimakan. After three and a half years, the travelers reached Kublai Khan's summer capital, Shangdu (Xanadu), and Marco saw for himself the famed ruler sitting atop a tall throne with a tame lion at his feet. Kublai Khan invited the travelers to the great capital city he was building called Daidu (which would become Beijing). While his father and uncle became wealthy trading with local merchants, Marco was busy taking in all he saw: Daidu's streets laid out like a chessboard, broad enough for nine horsemen to gallop abreast; the "black stones that burn like logs," heating homes and water so efficiently that people could take hot baths every day (coal was unknown to him, and daily bathing an oddity); the efficient postal system; and, most amazing of all, the use of paper money instead of coins. Having learned several languages, Marco told the Khan what he knew about everyday life in places as distant as Tibet and Burma (modern-day Myanmar). He came to respect Kublai Khan's liberality in matters of religion, noting that "if only all are faithful to the Great Khan and obey his laws, they may do whatever they please with their souls." Marco Polo's adventures were not over when, after an absence of 24 years, he returned to Italy. War erupted between Venice and Genoa and, serving as captain of a Venetian galley, Marco was captured and thrown into prison. There he shared his cell with an author, Rustichello of Pisa, and "the practiced writer of romances teamed up with the restless wanderer." The result was a book that was copied over and over again and translated into many languages. It became one of the world's most influential works, inspiring legions of travelers and explorers, including Christopher Columbus - who, Freedman tells us, "used his well-thumbed Latin translation as a guidebook, scribbling notes in the margins and underlining passages about gold, jewels and spices." But not everyone believed that Marco had done all he said he had. Some accused him of putting together his account based on stories he'd heard from other travelers; he was called "the man of a million lies." In our own day, too, scholars have raised questions. If, as he claimed, Marco Polo spent 17 years at the court of Kublai Khan, why is he never mentioned in Chinese documents? Why does he seem to be unaware of China's Great Wall? Freedman doesn't draw a definitive conclusion, but he notes that, despite various mysteries, most scholars today believe that Marco Polo's account of what he saw and did is "essentially truthful." The magnificent illustrations by Ibatoulline emphasize the widespread popularity of Marco Polo's book by drawing on various versions of it from medieval Spain, England and Germany. Other images are inspired by period art from China and Persia, and excellent maps show the travelers' routes to China and back again. This is a thought-provoking book, one that will fascinate readers of all ages. Stephanie Deutsch is a writer who lives in Washington.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [October 27, 2009]
Review by Booklist Review
The name Marco Polo evokes images of faraway travels and exotic treasures: silks and spices, gold and jewels. Newbery Medal-winner Freedman takes readers along on Polo's journey in a book that is as beautiful as many of the sights the explorer observed. It begins at Polo's deathbed, his family begging him to confess his exaggerations. Even some contemporary scholars don't believe Polo went to China, but many observers think most of his tales were true. Using Polo's own descriptions (as told to a writer he met in prison), Freedman shepherds readers across deserts, down the Silk Road, and over mountains until the adventurer reaches the magnificent kingdom of Kublai Khan. Supporting Freedman's informative yet evocative prose are enchanting illustrations. Ibatoulline follows the historic journey with art inspired by different periods--for instance, he uses illuminated manuscripts as the basis for the European scenes. The original artwork is complemented by many historic illustrations, some from editions of Polo's Description of the World. 0 The meticulous art notes call attention to the lack of text source notes, although Freedman does include an extensive, informative author's note about Polo's claims. With its thick, mottled pages and attractive design, this is a glorious piece of bookmaking; readers will find it a pleasure to explore. --Ilene Cooper Copyright 2006 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Freedman (Confucius: The Golden Rule) here investigates the puzzle posed by the more than 150 extant versions of the 13th-century explorer Marco Polo's book, The Description of the World. In his introductory and last chapters (as well as a concluding author's note that lays out where modern scholars stand on Polo), Freedman acknowledges that many, from Polo's day forward, have contested the veracity of Marco's claims, which included a three-year governorship of Yangzhou and work as a "trusted envoy" of Kublai Khan. In the fascinating central chapters, Freedman sidelines skepticism: he quotes liberally from Polo's account, retracing the amazing journey to and from lands unfathomable to most Europeans living at that time. Marco, at age 17, with his merchant father and uncle, trekked through the Middle East, India and China, sailing over four seas, on a journey that would take nearly 24 years to complete. Ibatoulline's accomplished paintings reflect the artistic conventions of the cultures Marco encountered (his sources are noted) and act as a visual bridge between the events of the text and captioned archival reproductions throughout many from editions of Marco's book (meticulously credited in endnotes). Two double-page maps (modern geographically, yet charmingly na?ve in style) trace Marco's route to and within China, and the seagoing journey home. Creamy pages resemble parchment, and attentive design elements include illustrated boards with gilt inlay. Freedman's impeccable research, historical fidelity and flair for engrossing narrative nonfiction combine with handsome bookmaking for a highly recommended biography. Ages 9-12. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-9-In an age when critics obsess about the blurred line between fact and fiction, Freedman prepares readers for ambiguity right from the contents page. "Nothing But the Truth" is both the title of his first chapter and a phrase pulled from Polo's book, The Description of the World. Apparently the Venetian's own family doubted the veracity of his version of the 24-year, 6500-mile journey to and sojourn in Kublai Khan's court and begged him to recant on his deathbed. The chapter "Did Marco Polo Go to China?" presents current scholarship challenging the nobleman's claims, as well as plausible counterarguments. In between, readers find a flavor of the adventurer's early and final years, descriptions of treacherous mountain excursions and raging sandstorms, and details of the splendor and sophistication of Xanadu, where Polo served as envoy to the emperor. The accounts are accompanied by original and archival illustrations and maps; extensive endnotes provide further documentation. Many of the illuminated manuscripts come from various editions of Polo's book; they span several centuries. Ibatoulline's handsome single-page paintings appear at the beginning of each chapter, anchoring the telling, even while the artistic conventions adapt to the culture being depicted. The calligraphic font of the chapter headings and the parchmentlike pages add to the sense of an authentic experience. The author's in-depth narrative style and historian's skepticism require more background knowledge and a longer attention span than Nick McCarty's Marco Polo (National Geographic, 2006), but the effort will be richly rewarded.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Intermediate, Middle School) This handsome volume-with faux-aged paper, archival prints, original art reminiscent of the Middle Ages, and gold leaf decorating the jacket-resembles a fourteenth-century manuscript, an appropriate aesthetic for a book about Marco Polo. Freedman sets his focus by posing two questions: ""Did he really travel to China and beyond, as he claimed? Or was he, in fact, 'the man of a million lies'?"" Freedman provides necessary background by writing of Polo's experiences and using liberal quotes from Polo's own Description of the World. Some descriptions seem fanciful, but Freedman asks readers to consider Polo's provincial point of view. Perhaps the creatures Polo encountered in Yunnan Province-""snakes"" that walked on legs and could eat a man-were actually crocodiles, an animal unknown in Europe. But such fantastic images, as well as Polo's tendency toward self-aggrandizement, his habit of usurping the accounts of others, the numerous abridgments, and a litany of things he did not report, also address the larger question of the journey's veracity. An author's note suggests more complex resources on the Polo debate. Also included are notes about the art (referencing specific illustrations) and an index. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A gloriously designed biography of Marco Polo brings to young readers some of the excitement his Description of the World must have offered to contemporary readers upon its publication at the turn of the 14th century. The graceful text quotes from Polo's account as it describes his travels into a land that, unfortunately, is likely as little known to the average American reader as it was to medieval Europeans. The passages through mountains and deserts receive as vivid a treatment as does the court of Kublai Khan, whose intellectual curiosity and religious tolerance stand as his shining achievements. Freedman admits his readers into the scholarly debate as to the veracity of Polo's account, both by admitting doubt where appropriate into the main narrative and in a more extensive concluding discussion. Ibatoulline exhibits chameleon-like adaptability with his chapter-introducing illustrations, varying style from Western to Eastern to suit the subject. Full-color reproductions of archival material, parchment-toned pages and two perfectly placed maps round out this spectacular offering. A bibliographical essay, detailed notes on the archival illustrations and an index comprise the exemplary backmatter. Simply splendid. (Biography. 9-12) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
