Review by Booklist Review
It takes a special talent to convey the essence of an artist to children in an understandable way. Burleigh does so expertly, highlighting Winslow Homer's fascination and love for the ocean and its waves, by pulling out and repeating words of action--splash, shimmer, calm, roar--to convey the emotion of Homer's seascapes as he captures with paint the beauty of the Maine coast where his family vacationed. Minor's watercolors allow sketch marks to show, mimicking the process by which Winslow brought pencil to paper and jotted impressions of the nearby cliff walks. The beautiful whites, grays, and blues are typical of New England, ably showing the power of places where sea meets land. Burleigh's text never overwhelms, with closing material going into more depth on Homer's life and the progression of his art, helpfully including reproductions of his works hanging in museums around the world. A list of web pages of where to see the art is useful for exploring beyond the book.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"How can paint and canvas ever tell the true story of the vast and ever-changing ocean? Winslow doesn't know the answer, but he feels the puzzle patiently waiting deep within him." Burleigh lyrically cycles through the seasons and the sea's changing moods as perceived by the artist Winslow Homer (1836--1910), punctuated by direct quotes from the artist, presented in italics. Throughout, Burleigh focuses on Homer's creative process, repeating the imperative "Look!"-- a clue to Homer's faith in acute and careful observation, and a cue to the reader to engage with Minor's watercolor and gouache illustrations. Minor's realistic depictions of Homer's spare and tidy domestic world and prim suiting situate the story in time, while the looser, more expressive evocations of the untamed Maine coastline evoke place. The closing section, dotted with exclamations and painting reproductions, fills in biographical details. A solid introduction to a major American artist. Ages 4--8. (June)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 3--6--This stunning work of literary nonfiction follows a year in the life and process of American painter Winslow Homer (1836--1910). The pacing of this book centers on the four seasons, beginning with winter, and describes how the sea and Homer shift and change through the year. Homer paints and paints, trying to capture the essence and movement of the sea, often coming close, but persevering nonetheless. Each season begins with a bold, poetic stanza which introduces the ideas and feelings the next section will evoke. The watercolor and pencil illustrations are beautiful and capture the different feelings the sea can conjure. The images are at times calm and peaceful and at times thrilling and dangerous. These illustrations are reason enough to add this book to collections but, in addition to the gorgeous visuals, this work is rich with sensory language. These details both enhance the experience of reading the book and can be applied and analyzed in language arts instruction of sensory language. Back matter includes photographs of Homer and his work as well as maps and more traditional biographical information. VERDICT A beautiful and rich work of literary nonfiction.--Christina Salazar, Mesquite I.S.D., TX
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Review by Horn Book Review
For each of these two biographical picture books of American icons, Burleigh and Minor (Night Train, Night Train, rev. 11/18; Tiny Bird, rev. 5/20; and others) focus on one signal achievement in their subject's career. For Winslow Homer, they imagine the artist in his Prouts Neck studio, painting the Maine coast just outside the window. The text here is more effusive than fact-bearing ("Elated, Winslow steps to the very rim of the rocks, once more feeling the force of wind and waves stir his soul: majestic, free, wild, untamed -- forever!") but does convey the power of artistic creation, while the gouache illustrations themselves re-create the wild waves and obdurate rocks in a way that evokes Homer without imitating him. Wilbur Wright gets a more straightforward accounting, in this case of his six-and-a-half-minute flight around the Statue of Liberty in 1909. Technical information is slight, but Burleigh successfully imparts the drama of the flight (for both the aviator and the crowd below) and its place in the history of aviation and the Wright brothers' accomplishments. And where Minor's paintings for the Winslow Homer book are all power and passion, here they look almost lighter than air, fine-lined and delicate; just right. Both books include extensive back matter about their subjects in general and these slices of their lives in particular. [Review covers these titles: Breaking Waves and Wilbur Wright Meets Lady Liberty.] (c) Copyright 2023. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Emphasizing 19th-century American artist Winslow Homer's life in Prouts Neck, Maine, this picture book explores Homer's love of painting the ocean. Winslow Homer was a successful American artist in his lifetime, and when he was 47, he left New York City to move to a southern Maine peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean. Here, in his converted carriage house/studio, he spent his time observing the sea and painting its moods. Rather than a biography, this book presents a contemplation on the fascination Homer felt for the Atlantic and the rocky shore--the inspiration for his well-known seascapes. Interspersing Homer's actual words with imagined daily activities, Burleigh's text brings readers into the artist's sensibility and creative process. The watercolor-and-gouache illustrations (a medium that Homer also employed) stay within Homer's palette in their color choices and are rendered in a loose, sketchy style. Both the style and the palette choice are effective creative decisions, delivering to the story a cumulative ambiance of an artist at work indoors and out, sketching, planning, seeing, and trying. Limiting the storyline to Homer in Prouts Neck effectively encapsulates Homer's fascination with painting the sea while underscoring his dedication to his art. Extensive backmatter gives further detail about Homer's life and travels, taking care to note his paintings that include African Americans (subjects not usually included in 19th-century American fine art). Quite authentically Homer. (Informational picture book. 6-10) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
