DRAWING CLOSE:
A LOOK AT CALDECOTT WINNING ILLUSTRATORS
#1 URI SHULEVITZ
"Many people think that a picture book is a little book that provides merely a few minutes of entertainment. What a picture book truly is is a messenger from the outside world, bringing a message of a life of other possibilities. It requires a life affirming attitude. A saccharine or sentimental picture book won’t do. It doesn’t have to be deep, although it doesn’t hurt if it is, but a picture book must be alive, whether it offers pleasure, joy, or sadness."
Uri Shulevitz, June 11, 2018 https://www.urishulevitz.com/blog.htm
I'm starting with Uri (pronounced "oo-ree") Shulevitz because I recently read his most recent book Chance: Escape from the Holocaust which is a memoir of his life during World War 2. He was born in 1935 in Warsaw, Poland. He remembers the Germans invading, bombs dropping, buildings blowing up - and then his family fled and spent most of the war years in different places in Russia. After reading his story, I wanted to take a look at his books.
Uri won the Caldecott Medal in 1969 for The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship - A Russian Folktale, retold by Arthur Ransome. Since then, he has also earned three Caldecott Honors - for The Treasure in 1979, Snow in 1999, and How I Learned Geography in 2009.
School Library Journal contributor Donna L. Scanlon praised Shulevitz's illustrations - particularly his use of contrast, as well as his "vibrant watercolor paintings, full of blocky angular characters and quirky off-kilter buildings". Uri uses pen, ink, watercolor, colored ink and tempera paint to create his sometimes realistic, sometimes fanciful illustrations. But he is "constantly searching for a new way of illustrating." (see citation below)
Snow and Dusk are my two favorites from the books I read. Dusk is a celebration of winter holidays while Snow is a great book to read in not-very-snowy Texas. Uri takes a drab winter landscape and turns it into a winter wonderland - propelled by one young boy's desire for snow. I also really enjoyed How I Learned Geography which is based on a true story from his childhood. And When I Wore My Sailor Suit features a very creepy pirate!
Do you have a favorite Shulevitz book?
No comments:
Post a Comment