On Becoming A Part Of The Natural Landscape

Some build their homes high above the ground among the leaves of a tree.  Others seek a hollow in that very tree, mid-way down or on the ground. Some construct massive towers out of dirt.  Others dig tunnels and barrows beneath the dirt.  Gray paper is used to shape those chambered globes hanging from trees.  The animal kingdom is inventive and adaptable in fashioning its residences.

You would think humans would learn from animals that form their abodes to harmonize with their surroundings and to withstand changes in their environment.  We rarely do but there was one phenomenal woman who did.  The world is not a rectangle: A Portrait Of Architect Zaha Hadid (Beach Lane Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, August 22, 2017) written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter is the story of a planner who saw the world around her and honored it with her designs.

In Iraq, rivers flow through green marshes.

Air like the water moves over and around sand and ruins from the past.  A little girl Zaha sees all this with her father and dreams of cities long gone.  Inside her home she recognizes hues and forms blending like the water and air over sand and marshes.  Her clothes, of her own design, and the furniture in her room are a reflection of what she observes in nature.

As a Muslim, attending Catholic school, who favors math above all else, she still dreams of cities long gone.  Yearning to make those visions a reality, she moves to London to study architecture.  With her learning she puts pencil to paper and paint to walls, bringing the past into the present.  After graduation with her degree, she and a handful of friends open an office in a large building calling it Studio 9.

The plans she creates and submits in competitions are strikingly singular.  Even when a design wins, a city committee rejects it.  Time and time again Zaha enters competitions but her ideas are not brought to life.  There is strength in Zaha, a fire which refuses to be extinguished.  She does not stop.

If you see towers resembling swaying grasses in marshes, think of Zaha Hadid.  If you see the interior of an opera house similar to an oyster shell, think of Zaha Hadid.  If you see a bridge comparable to the waves on the water beneath it, think of Zaha Hadid.  In never giving up, the one office expands to every space available in the old school building.  Hundreds of architects work to make Zaha's visions a reality.

She expands her creativity to toys, clothing and furniture.  She does not stop until her heart does.  Even in death, her dreams endure through the efforts of like-minded people working in her business.


Through meticulous research, many primary sources, Jeanette Winter models the story of Zaha Hadid much like she herself designed buildings.  She thoughtfully combines the history of Zaha Hadid's life to supply readers with a narrative which turns and swirls like water and air.  In the length of her sentences and the combination of information, she supplies a cadence.  The repetition of specific phrases and verbs enhances this beat.  Here are two sample sentences.

Zaha looks at stones in a stream
and builds an opera house like the pebbles in the water.

Inside the opera house, a singer is the pearl in the oyster shell.


On the front of the matching dust jacket and book case Jeanette Winter has placed an adult Zaha Hadid with an armful of blueprints, representative of the woman's continuous ideas.  Above the water and grasses of a marsh are Signature Towers proposed to rise in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.  To the left, on the back, little girl Zaha sits among sand dunes wondering about cities from long ago.  It is a slightly smaller interior image set on a white background.

Pale mint green colors the opening and closing endpapers.  On the title page an older Zaha wrapped in clothing of her own design holds planet earth, the world, in her hands.  With each page turn images are placed on a canvas of white.  Their shapes, the framing and edges, mirror the text.

Many of them are single page pictures but for dramatic effect Jeanette Winter expands the illustrations to two pages for the buildings completed by Zaha.  These are in full color, page edge to page edge.  She places Zaha within the natural setting drawing or observing as the finished project is revealed on the right.  It is a marvelous depiction of the woman and her work.

One of my many favorite illustrations shows Zaha standing in a stream as water flows past her.  All we see are her bare feet, ankles and a portion of her legs near two stones.  The stream crosses the gutter to the right.  An enormous opera house built in the likeness of the stones overlooks a river in China.  The shift in point of view is a tribute to the creative mind of Zaha Hadid.


With each reading of The world is not a rectangle: A Portrait Of Architect Zaha Hadid written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter your admiration for the perseverance and perspective of this woman grows. Her contributions to the world of architecture are unmatched.  On the four concluding pages thumbnails of interior illustrations name the completed buildings designed by Zaha Hadid and where they are located.  Quotations by and further information about Zaha Hadid are included along with a small author's note and extensive source list. You will certainly want a copy of this book on your professional shelves and in your personal collection.

As I do with any nonfiction picture book I read, I did more personal research.  I discovered the Broad Art Museum located on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan was designed by Zaha Hadid.  It opened on November 10, 2012.

If you desire to view interior illustrations from this title please visit the publisher's website.  A page dedicated to Jeanette Winter has been compiled by the Central Rappahannock Regional Library.  It has several links to other sources.  Jeanette Winter is featured in an interview at A Mighty Girl website.


Please be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to read about the selection of other bloggers participating in the 2017 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.

Thanksgiving Treasures-Tradition #6

Heading home today after sharing thanks and food with friends and their family, my co-pilot, my furry friend perched on the compartment between the front seats like a figurehead on a ship, and I observed in the twilight the signs of the upcoming holiday.  Lighted garlands are wrapped around lamp posts in local communities.  A large green tractor is completely covered in white lights as it sits on the lawn in front of the John Deere building.  Here and there some homes are already brightly decorated with twinkling rainbow lights.  One such home looks like it should join in the feud from the Deck the Halls movie.

For this blog post it has been my practice to highlight those titles which focus on gratitude but this year I am going to showcase two older titles which serve to pay tribute to a man who brought joy to thousands before Christmas every year in the month of November.  My previous posts, Thanksgiving Treasures-Tradition, Thanksgiving Treasures-Tradition #2, Thanksgiving Treasures-Tradition #3, Thanksgiving Treasures-Tradition #4 and Thanksgiving Treasures-Tradition #5, featured these books.


The Christmas Tree Ship (Philomel Books, October 6, 1994) written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter is based upon the true story of Captain Herman Schuenemann.  This man used his fishing schooner, the Rouse Simmons, to deliver evergreen trees from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to Chicago beginning in 1887.  For twenty-five years he set sail from Thompson to deliver Christmas joy to waiting people on the other side of Lake Michigan.

He and his crew and his wife and three daughters worked cutting trees and loading them on the ship.  As his family waved goodbye the Captain sailed over the frigid waters.  He loved sailing with his ship loaded with trees.  People were always excited when The Christmas Tree Ship moved up the Chicago River to the Clark Street Bridge.

These trees made their way into homes announcing the festivities to come.  On the other side of the lake, a wife and three daughters waited.  The following year snow fell as the trees were cut and taken to the ship.  It was still falling as the vessel set sail.

Out on the lake the snowfall became a blizzard of white, waves and wind.  The Christmas Tree Ship never arrived at the Clark Street Bridge.  A spruce tree was snagged in a fisherman's net.  A bottle washed upon a shore in Wisconsin with a note from Captain Herman.  When November came the next year a wife and three daughters continued the work of a husband and a father.


Jeanette Winter follows the facts closely in her interpretation of this story.  She does change some of the names but the soul and heart of the tale remains true.  When you read her words it's like listening to the storyteller reveal the magic of a legend.  Here are several passages.

Friendly gulls stayed close as The Christmas Tree Ship made its way down the icy waters of the winter lake.
Night fell, snowflakes fell, like stars falling all around.
Night on the lake was the captain's favorite time.


The matching dust jacket and book case immediately call out to the reader welcoming them with the familiar signature style of Jeanette Winter.  For those unaware of the story questions begin to form.  Who is this man?  Who are the woman and the three girls?  Why is he sailing in the winter?  To the left, on the back, six spruce trees are placed in a snowy square of purple against a dark green canvas.  The opening and closing endpapers are a rich red.  Beneath the text on the title page in a square is a small boat carrying a single upright tree.

For every page turn Jeanette Winter has given readers a single, framed image.  Her attention to detail is remarkable.  These pictures are like looking at pieces of Americana.  She alters her perspective giving us close-up views of the characters or panoramic views of the lake or city.

One of my many favorite illustrations is of the arrival of the ship in Chicago.  We are looking down at the scene as if we are a bird.  On either side of the river buildings stand tall, smoke billowing from the stacks.  Bridges cross from side to side as the ship slowly moves toward its destination.




The Christmas Tree Ship: The Story of Captain Santa (The Guest Cottage, Inc., November 2002) written by Rochelle M. Pennington with paintings by Charles Vickery begins in 1912, the final November Captain Schuenemann would sail. The captain knew winter was coming quickly and he had to hurry to make this final delivery of the year.  He had been doing this for more than two decades, selling his trees right from his ship.  For those who could not afford his trees or to charities, he gave the trees away for free.  His generosity earned him the name of Captain Santa.

Every year the captain's wife would ask the same question and every year he gave the same answer.  This year the forty-four year old ship was as loaded as ever when the Captain's voice rang out,

"Unleash the sails! Raise 'em high!

The captain loved to sail.  He loved Christmas.  He loved delivering these trees.

The captain knew he was in trouble when he saw the darkening sky.  The storm came fast and hard with bone-chilling temperatures and fearsome waves.  In Kewaunee, Wisconsin his distress call was picked up by the United States Lifesaving Station.

A crew from Two Rivers headed out to help.  They saw the Rouse Simmons but when they looked again it was gone.  It was two weeks and six days before the corked bottle was found.  (It wasn't until 1971 before the ship was discovered by a diver.  Christmas trees were still tied to the deck.)  But that was not the end of The Christmas Tree Ship in 1912 for the captain's wife Barbara and their daughters continued the tradition for another twenty-one years bringing trees from Michigan to Chicago.

Rochelle M. Pennington spins a tale of a big-hearted man (and his family) using research and poetic language.  She creates an atmosphere with her words taking us into the exact moment.  Many of the passages (I believe) are a reflection of her faith.  Here is a passage.

Then the captain saw it.  It was the one sight he loved more than any other when he was out to sea, this very sight, the sight of seemingly being able to see forever across endless waters and an endless horizon.

Somewhere out there Chicago lay.  The captain knew it.  But for now, it appeared not to be so.  For now, it looked as if he and his ship, with its sails raised high, could sail on forever into infinity.  He embraced the sight with his arms spread wide across the width of the wheel he worked before him.  Sail on, Captain, sail on.


Traditional, classic paintings by Charles Vickery of the schooner's arrival in Chicago and the schooner on the lake grace the front and back of the matching dust jacket and book case.  The use of light and shadow is stunning here and throughout the book.  Exquisite fine lines bring a photographic reality to the illustrations.  A sea green covers the opening and closing endpapers.

Most of the images span a single page opposite the narrative, with some crossing the gutter.  Original photographs are included with captions when appropriate.  They are placed on top of a painted background.

One of my favorite illustrations is of the arrival of The Christmas Tree Ship at the dock in Chicago.  Buildings and other ships on the river provide a background.  The sails on the ship are closed and tied.  Trees are stacked on the deck.  Other trees are being unloaded on carts or sold on the dock.  People are standing in the snow watching.

The Christmas Tree Ship written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter and The Christmas Tree Ship: The Story of Captain Santa written by Rochelle M. Pennington with paintings by Charles Vickery keep alive the memorable story of the work of one man and the work of his wife and daughters.  Their benevolent spirits live in the pages of these books.  Jeanette Winter does include a note at the beginning of her book.

To learn more about Rochelle M. Pennington and Charles Vickery please visit their websites by following the links attached to their names.  Jeanette Winter is interviewed at A Mighty Girl in 2013.  I believe you will enjoy reading The Story of Chicago's Christmas Tree Ship, December 24, 2013 and The Christmas Tree Ship in the National Archives.

Bringing Books To Readers

Happy World Read Aloud Day!  

Earlier this year (February 13, 2014) John Schumacher had a guest on his blog (Watch. Connect. Read.)Pam Allyn for LitWorld.  The post talked about The World Read Aloud Blogging Challenge.  The questions in this challenge could be asked and answered anytime of the year.  Each World Read Aloud Day raises awareness of the importance of reading aloud for readers and listeners.

It also shifts the focus to those children, people, who have no books, no access to libraries or other forms of the written word.  Published in 2010 Jeanette Winter's book, Biblioburro:  A True Story from Colombia (Beach Lane Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division) pays tribute to the life of one man making a difference, bringing books to children who would otherwise have none.  His travels are creating transformations one reader at a time.

Deep in the jungles of Colombia, there lives a man who loves books.  His name is Luis.

Luis loves books so much his house is filled with them.  His wife, Diana, wonders about their growing numbers.  Her worries give Luis an idea. 

Two burros, Alfa and Beto, become new members of the Soriano household.  They will carry Luis and crates filled with books into the mountains to children.  Each week they travel to a different remote village.

These trips are not without their trials and tribulations.  The burros can determine the arrival time when one or the other refuse to move.  Once a bandit stopped Luis, taking a book but warning him money would be necessary next time.

Arriving in a village Luis reads to the gathered children; sometimes handing out masks for them to wear.  Books are eagerly and happily chosen before he leaves.  On his return home in the evening Luis knows the children he visited on this day will be doing the same thing he is before bedtime...reading.

What Jeanette Winter does in this book, making it more of an intimate experience for the reader, is to focus on a specific village Luis visits.  After introducing readers in the narrative to Luis, his wife, Diana, and the two burros, Alfa and Beto, she centers the story on a trip to the village of El Tormento.  Her descriptions of the time of day and surrounding hillside in the jungle help readers to feel as though they are on the burro with Luis.  The insertion of dialogue increases our personal attachment to the story.  Here is a sample passage.

Deep in the hills, the path is lonelier than ever.

Bird songs are the only sounds they hear.

Then, from deep in the shadows,

a bandit leaps out!

"Please let us pass," Luis says.

"The children are waiting." ...

Using acrylic paint with pen and ink Jeanette Winter depicts a true sense of place and people.  The matching jacket and case reflect the subject of the book filling the illustrations with flora and fauna found in the Colombian jungles.  On the back surrounded by white space Luis sits on a rock reading as butterflies land on his hat and shirt.  The opening endpapers are a bright turquoise; the closing endpapers a rich lavender. 

All of the pictures in this book extend from edge to edge across both pages using the same radiant color palette as seen on the cover.  Butterflies are featured on every visual (as are many other creatures) including the final evening spread.  Given the symbolism attached to them, this is particularly pleasing.  

One of my favorite illustrations is wordless.  Luis is seated on a rock reading to a group of children wearing pig masks.  The burros are watching as vivid orange butterflies land and fly about the people.  In small light turquoise ovals like speech bubbles we see the pictures from the story Luis is reading.  

Biblioburro:  A True Story From Colombia written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter is one of those very special books illuminating the life of single individual who choose to share his passion with others.  Who knows how the lives of those children he brings books to will be changed?  Jeanette Winter provides more information on a single page author's note at the book's end.  Here is a link to the publisher's website offering viewers a glimpse of more pages from the book as well as a video.

Another wonderful book which recounts the travels of Luis Soriano Bohorquez is Waiting for the Biblioburro (Tricycle Press, an imprint Random House Children's Book, 2011) by Monica Brown with illustrations by John Parra.  In this fictional story of a little girl named Anna, we learn her teacher has left their village.  No one is there to teach the children any longer, to give them new reading materials.  Ana makes up stories to fill her longing for books, entertaining her younger brother.  

One day, she hears the sound of burros clip-clopping into her village.  It's a man carrying a sign reading Biblioburro.  He explains his moving library, reads stories to the children and lets them choose books to borrow.  

At the suggestion of Luis, while waiting for his return and wondering when it will be, Ana writes a book about the two burros.  Guess what is placed in the book carriers when the Biblioburro leaves after his next visit?  A reader.  A writer.  Children are being changed.

In her author's note Monica Brown reveals how she came to write this book after getting to know Luis Soriano Bohorquez.  Beneath her author's note is a glossary of the Spanish words she wove into her narrative adding an authenticity to the telling.  The way she has written this book is to show the beautiful circle made by Luis's generosity.  One reader is reaching out to many; they in turn are reaching others.

There is a folk art quality to the illustrations created with acrylics on board by John Parra.  Pictures vary, extending edge to edge, across one or two pages.  His colors are more centered in earth tones.  His images of how reading fuels the imagination are simply beautiful.  I am especially fond of the two pages showing the days of the week in Spanish, time swirling about, as Ana waits for the return of the Biblioburro.  The inclusion of her parents, flora, fauna and elements from her daily life is excellently designed.

Please follow the links embedded in the author and illustrator names above to their websites.  There is much more about their work there.  

For further reading and information about Luis Soriano Bohorquez please visit this link to Teaching kids to read from the back of a burro at CNN and this link to a PBS documentary point of view page, Luis Soriano:  News Updates from the Back of a Burro.  Random House has many pages devoted to this book at their website linked here.  Included are a teacher's guide, an excerpt, a look inside and related links.  

I thank Alyson Beecher for hosting this challenge each week at Kid Lit Frenzy.  My reading of nonfiction picture books is increasing by leaps and bounds.

Her Patience Was Rewarded

On the same day in April of 2011 two books were released about the same person.  One is fiction, the other is nonfiction.  Both appear on the ALA Notable Children's Books 2012 list.  Both received starred reviews from Booklist and Kirkus.  One received a Caldecott Honor award.

The person whose life is showcased in each is Jane Goodall.  Me...Jane (Little, Brown and Company) written and illustrated by Patrick McDonnell, the fiction title, is the recipient of a Caldecott Honor award. In July of 2011 I reviewed it here.  If you choose to read my review you will see I am a fan of Patrick McDonnell's work.

I also have a deep admiration for the books written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter; many have a place on my personal bookshelves. Two nights ago I was reading several titles, deciding to revisit them in posts on this blog.  The Watcher:  Jane Goodall's Life with the Chimps (Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House Children's Books) is an extraordinary book about one woman's pursuit of her life's passion.

"Jane, Jane, where are you?"
"Jane, can you hear me?"
EVERYONE had been searching for hours and hours, looking for little Valerie Jane Goodall.

Jane had been carefully and quietly waiting to see a hen lay an egg.  She was only five years old.  She continued to feed her curiosity by observing all the creatures in her immediate surroundings but her dreams grew, fueled by her love of books like Doctor Dolittle and Tarzan of the Apes.  

Jane wished with all her heart to go to Africa, working and saving as she got older.  Finally journeying to Kenya she met Louis Leakey who asked her to go to Tanzania to study chimpanzees.  Weeks stretched into months as Jane watched and waited; she became one with the chimpanzees.

One day a chimpanzee she had named David Greybeard broke the contact barrier, taking a banana from her hand. His acceptance of Jane opened the door for the others.  Now Jane watched and wrote and watched and wrote.

As the years passed Jane could see her beloved chimpanzees would be better served if she left them, alerting others to the need to preserve their home and protect them from those who would bring them harm.  Her voice was heard around the world.  Not only did Jane realize her childhood dreams but she championed for those unable to speak for themselves.  She watched, waited and worked.  The world is a better place for her efforts.


In acquainting readers with Jane Goodall, Jeanette Winter chooses to highlight those very things which make her fully human; befriending a robin who builds a nest in her bedroom bookcase, hiding money under a rug as she saves to go to Africa and the vulnerability she feels when struck by malaria in the forest of Gombe.  Winter's depiction of the process in gaining the chimpanzee's trust is to focus on the daily activities of Jane; the utmost care to be seen but not be intrusive.  Each time Winter inserts a quote of Jane's into the narrative we feel our affinity to her become stronger. The carefully formed sentences, a few on each page, tell us exactly what we need and want to know about Jane Goodall.  This is Jeanette Winter's gift as a writer.

Using acrylic paint and pencil for her artwork, it beckons us into the world of Jane Goodall immediately when the dust jacket is unfolded.  The illustration extends to the flap edges on both sides; the rolling hills of the forest with chimpanzees peeking from the treetops on the back and a small square inset with Jane and David Greybeard in the center.  Using only Jane's face and hands as she looks into her binoculars with the chimpanzee in each lens beneath the title is brilliant.  The book's case is different, patterned in the forest hills populated by the primates.

The opening endpapers in a sky blue, the closing endpapers in a mint green feature a single forest bird in flight.  The verso contains a small visual of Jane's childhood home opposite the title page on the right of a young Jane holding her cherished stuffed toy chimpanzee.  Prior to Jane's arrival in Africa, Winter's visuals are small squares with elements spreading to the outside of the frames. The remainder of the book is nearly all two page pictures.  Single page illustrations are facing one another tied together with a common element.

These illustrations in Jeanette Winter's own unique style are full of all the wonder felt, the delight known and the good and worrisome life experiences of Jane Goodall.  My favorite is of Jane sleeping on the Peak at night to be close to the chimpanzees.  The hues of blue, green, purple and brown with the full moon and stars as silent observers give a sense of peace and purpose.


Jeanette Winter closes this book with two sentences toward the end of her A Note About This Story:

I wish that when I was a little girl, I could have read about someone like Jane Goodall---
a brave woman who wasn't afraid to do something that had never been done before.  So now I've made this book for that little girl, who still speaks to me. 

Certainly The Watcher:  Jane Goodall's Life with the Chimps written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter will be the perfect match for those readers needing to know following your dreams can make all the difference.  It is the kind of biography readers will want to read and reread.  I know I have.  If you would like to see more pages from this book, please follow this link to the publisher's website.  For a delightful interview with Jeanette Winter on the publication of her book Kali's Song, please visit John Schumacher's blog, Watch. Connect. Read.

I am excited to be participating in Alyson Beecher's 2014 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge hosted at her blog Kid Lit Frenzy.  Make sure you stop over there to see all the other nonfiction picture books showcased by other bloggers.

Cutting Up Color

In my closet, a stash of more than thirty years of teaching ideas and lessons, is a well-worn flat brown paper bag.  Inside are treasures gathered from students ranging in ages from kindergarten through seniors in high school.  Each item is crafted by hand, some more experienced than others, into the beauty their minds imagined.  Every year these gems have hung from the ceiling in my libraries swirling and swaying in the currents of air.  No two alike, they mirror real snowflakes drifting down outside.

A little more than a year ago, I reviewed Colorful Dreamer: the Story of Artist Henri Matisse (November, 2012) by Marjorie Blain Parker with illustrations by Holly Berry.  In August of 2013 author illustrator Jeanette Winter chose to focus on the later years of Henri Matisse's life in her release titled Henri's Scissors (Beach Lane Books).  Inspired by a visit to the National Gallery in Washington, D. C. where she saw the original pieces Matisse created, she shares with readers his final creative years.

In a small weaving town in France, a young boy named Henri-Emile-Benoit Matisse watched his mother paint china.  He wanted to paint too.

Henri did draw and paint but it isn't until as a young man, an illness confining him to a hospital bed, he flourishes as an artist.  Once well, he abandons his career in law and paints and paints and paints...for years.  Matisse is now an old man.  Again Matisse is so ill he cannot leave his bed.  All he can do is sleep and dream.

Recuperating enough to be awake more than sleeping, Henri realizes he will be spending the rest of his life in a wheelchair or in bed. Little by little, Matisse gets stronger; strong enough to draw, strong enough to make art another way.

Using scissors he cuts shapes from painted paper.  On his walls hang a world filled with color, filled with life.  As his ideas grow, so do the shapes.  In his hands Henri's scissors were magical.


Readers of Jeanette Winter's work know she uses few words to narrate her stories but those words she chooses to use, convey all we need to know.  Her words fill us with the emotional essence of a person.  We come to understand and know their purpose and passions.  To add authenticity to Henri Matisse's story, Winter places quotes from his writing within her text.  Here is but one example.

Matisse cut paper all day.
"My pleasure 
in cutting things out
grows even greater.
Why didn't I think of
it earlier?"
His assistants painted paper for him all day.


If you open the matching jacket and cover of this book, Jeanette Winter gives readers an overview of Matisse's work in his younger years on the left.  Against a dark background of blue, lighter pinpoints surround Henri, palette and brush in hand, looking at four pieces of his work. To the right, although he is years older, there is a sense of joy, of lightness, to the picture of him cutting out shapes, a cat and bird by his side.   Opening and closing endpapers in pale golden yellow feature quotes, Henri's hand holding his scissors and stars.

That same hue of yellow creates wide frames around smaller, single page square illustrations when Winter is acquainting us with Henri.  Complementary shades of blue, green, rose, purple and white across the remaining two-page pictures provide the canvas for her acrylic and cut paper visuals.  Her text follows the flow of her illustrations.

Depending on the moment she wishes to depict, Winter might provide readers with a more wide-angle view following it with a closer perspective.  In the final four pages Winter imagines Henri Matisse passing from earth into the heavens, wondering about his current use of his scissors.  It is utterly lovely.
One of my favorite illustrations is of Matisse lying in bed, arms extended as he holds a pole with chalk tied to the end.  He is drawing the faces of his grandchildren on the ceiling.


The value of biographical works such as Henri's Scissors written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter is to show readers the true measure of a person's life no matter their age.  It highlights pursuing your passion even if you need to alter the means of attaining your goals.  This delightful book comes with my highest recommendation.  If you follow this link to the publisher's website you can see one of my favorite pictures.

I am excited to be participating in Alyson Beecher's 2014 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge hosted at her blog Kid Lit Frenzy.  Make sure you stop over there to see all the other nonfiction picture books showcased by other bloggers.