Book Review of PASS IT DOWN: FIVE PICTURE-BOOK FAMILIES MAKE THEIR MARK.
A. Marcus, Leonard S. PASS IT DOWN: FIVE PICTURE-BOOK FAMILIES MAKE THEIR MARK.
New York: Walker & Company, 2007.
B. PLOT SUMMARY: The book is a concise yet rich rendering of biographical information as it pertains to families in the business of writing and or illustrating literature of the children's picture book variety. The five well known picture book families that are portrayed include Walter Dean Myers and his son Christopher Myers, Donald Crews and his wife Ann Jonas and their daughter Nina Crews, Marlow and Anne Rockwell and daughter Lizzy Rockwell, Jerry Pinkney and son Brian Pinkney. Clement and Edith Thacher and their son Thacher Hurd.
The volume traces the phenomena of how families often have many members with the same talents and that often leads to collaboration or choosing the same, similar, or complementary careers of melding art and story together for the creation of childrens picture books.
C. CRITICAL ANALYSIS (With Cultural Markers and Established Standards of Excellence)
The book is visually very appealing from the bright and colorful cover to the brilliant yellow gold of the end papers. The type setting is unusually interesting, the index is exhaustive and the glossary is very helpful. In telling the story of these creative families the author uses many primary sources. Most prevalent are photos from the families themselves. Photos of Nina and Amy Crews painting on easels with their oil cloth aprons help to support the claim that they went in and out of their parent's studio and indeed had one of their own that bordered their parent's workroom. I thought the presentation of the Pinkneys was exceptional. There is a photograph of Brian modeling for his Dad. He is squatting and holding a mailing tube in place of a saxophone. It is uncanny to see the finished art in watercolor and pencil from Jerry Pinkney's book, HALF A MOON AND ONE WHOLE STAR. The painting reflects Brian's stance almost as if it were photocopied. The exact angle of the feet with the left heel not touching the flooring, the exact type of eyeglasses from photo to finished art work and so many other very small details that make the piece rich and as integral and probably more so than the text of the title.
There were many details that even most childrens book lovers will likely not know before reading the book such as that Clement and Edith Thacher were intimates of Margaret Wise Brown, famed author of GOODNIGHT MOON. We learn their nicknames. Clement is Clem, Edith is Posey, and Margaret is Brownie. There is a rare photo of the Thachers with Brownie that shows exquisite detail of clothing, accessories hats, corsages, pocket hankerchiefs, and the style of furniture in the foyer. We see an ink study of Brown's GOODNIGHT MOON. Margaret decided that she would select the name of the Hurd's baby before it was born. She was right in that the baby was a boy. The Hurd's and Margaret were collaborating on a picturebook. When Margaret sent the Hurd's a new version of the manuscript the dedication page read, "For Hiram, when he comes." In the final version of the story published a few months later Clem changes the dedication to: "For John Thacher Hurd. When he comes. (He's here.) There is a picture of Thacher (as he would be called) with his father and the devastation of the couple when Brownie dies unexpectedly and early.
The story or the Crews family is rendered extremely well. Pictures of Donald using an airbrush for his first award winning book; FREIGHT TRAIN which received the Caldecott Honor Book award. There is a photo that shows such joy and wide smiles that it is extremely contagious. Donald and wife Ann have their picture taken on either side of their daughter Nina at the publication party of her first book. Crews looks as I remember him over a decade ago, big beard, bow tie, and a smile that was as wide as train tracks are long. We also learn small things that make us feel as if we actually know these families and not just their books. Ann Jonas wears a patch on her eye in more than one picture taken at different times and locations. This black patch over her left idea would make a child think of a pirate and the exciting details go on and on.
I have read Walter Dean Myers for as long as I can remember but I didn't remember him at all as a picture book author until I saw the award winning cover of HARLEM in the chapter of the Myers. There is a large color photo of a self-portrait that Chrisopher Myers made of himself at 14. There are pictures of father and son autographing books together and a 2 paged letter to Walter from the editor of Holiday House commenting on his work in progress BLUES JOURNEY.
The style of writing flows and the color placards introducing the families look like postcards, the page numbers alternate between blue, purple, green and terra cotta. The book though intended for middle school students would be equally pleasurable to bright students from the 3rd or 4th grade on up. The book is not "dumb downed" in the least and will appeal to teachers, writers and librarians as much or more than to young people.
As in true picturebook form these photos, illustrations, and memorabilia are as important if not more so than the text of the book. On the back of the book in bright red and gold the author appeals to children with the heading: THE NEXT GENERATION PICKS UP THE PEN AND PAINTBRUSH. Details about whether the children wanted to approach art as their parents had or had a more independent feeling for picturebook realization is mentioned using quotes from the children. The characters, who in this book are living authors and illustrators are very fleshed out, the transition from chapter to chapter and family to family flows smoothly and seamlessly.
D. REVIEW EXCERPTS:
School Library Journal assesses the book:
Grade 4 Up—Marcus presents the events and circumstances that have resulted in five picture-book dynasties. Each chapter includes biographical information about the subjects that zeroes in on the salient pieces that nurtured artistic growth and includes numerous quotes from the authors/illustrators themselves...
Marcus's writing is, as usual, tight but lively, and each chapter is liberally laced with photographs, preliminary sketches, and final art. The book will be of interest to those readers who enjoy getting behind the scenes of the books they love.
Booklist muses:
Marcus quotes extensively from interviews with each living subject and weaves the personal statements into a coherent presentation to show how each person developed creatively. Illustrations include family photos and artwork, beautifully reproduced in color on heavy, glossy pages. This may be of greatest interest to librarians, but young fans will find this a very readable and perceptive book that throws an intriguing light on growing up within a successful family and choosing a career path.
REVIEWS ACCESSED FROM:
http://www.amazon.com/Pass-Down-Picture-Families-Their/dp/0802796001/ref=sr_1_1/103-7575722-4136600?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189824716&sr=1-1
E. CONNECTIONS:
Other books in the series by Leonard Marcus are a logical choice in my estimation and Booklist agrees:
Similar in format to Marcus' previous books on picture-book creators, includingSide by Side: Five Favorite Picture-Book Teams Go to Work (2001), this handsome book looks at five picture-book dynasties
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