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Christensen, Bonnie
8 Reviews
(2)
K-3
Evocative free verse follows Elvis chronologically from his humble beginnings to the legendary Sun Records recording studio in Memphis where the young musician got his big break. Christensen wisely focuses on Elvis's childhood and pre-fame years; many young readers will relate to his unwavering focus on music. Photo-collage and mixed-media illustrations have just the right touch of folksiness for the subject. Timeline. Bib.
Reviewer: Sam Bloom
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2015
(2)
K-3
A girl in China, 850 AD, gives her father a jade pebble, "a gift for a child at the end of the [Silk] road." He passes Mei's pebble to a Buddhist monk, who passes along both pebble and his flute, and so on. Soft watercolor and gouache illustrations feature intricate patterns in the style of each country visited. An author's note is appended. Websites. Bib.
Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
September, 2013
(2)
K-3
More straightforward if less individual than Peter Sis's Starry Messenger, this is an excellent introduction to the scientist. The illustrations not only give geographical and historical context for Galileo's ideas and experiments but also convey the arc of the narrative. Diagrams illustrating some of Galileo's key concepts are clear and executed in a harmonious style. Bib., glos., ind.
Reviewer: Roger Sutton
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2012
(2)
PS
From its handsome title-page introduction of fourteen vegetable-garden plants to the useful facts and tips arrayed on seed packets on its last page, this is an inspiring celebration of planning, growing, and enjoying the results of a community garden. A boy and girl with comfortably muddy knees are the gardeners. Vividly colored illustrations invest the whole cycle, from catalog to harvest, with energy.
Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2012
(2)
4-6
Profiling the "Prince of Pop Art" from his 1930s Pittsburgh childhood through the height of his fame in 1966, Christensen shows that Andy Warhol became a visionary artist through determination and hard work. Highly textured oil and collage illustrations, which incorporate "replicas" of Warhol's art, provide a solid backdrop to a life that came to seem, in later years, glitzy and unreal.
Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2011
(3)
4-6
"Dogs bark / Banjos talk / Dinners boil in black pots." Rhythmic, impressionistic text tells of Django Reinhardt, Belgium-born Roma musician who overcame a hardscrabble childhood and a hand injury to become the "world's greatest jazz guitarist." Christensen's atmospheric oil paintings are sketchlike, smoky, and unfinished at the edges--recalling jazz music itself. Additional biographical information concludes the book. Bib.
Reviewer: Nell Beram
(2)
4-6
Christensen touches on Bly's early life (she was born at the end of the Civil War) and the beginnings of her career, but it's her around-the-world journey that forms the literary and visual climax of the story. A final montage centering the adult Bly among the women and children who served as subjects of her exposés and later crusades reminds readers of her powerful voice and of those "who had no friend but Nellie Bly." Chronology, videography. Bib.
Reviewer: Betty Carter
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
September, 2003
(1)
K-3
Beginning with Guthrie's life preceding the Depression, Christensen traces his wanderings across the United States and the influences on his music. The hand-lettered words to all seven verses of "This Land Is Your Land" border the text and unify the book, which is illustrated with art that resembles woodcuts. Historical background creates a rich context for understanding the relationship between Guthrie's experiences and his work. A time line is appended.
Reviewer: Betty Carter
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
January, 2002
8 reviews
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