(3) 4-6 Checkerboard Library: Cool Makerspace series. This series centered on makerspaces should give middle-grade makers, crafters, and hobbyists fresh ideas to spark their creative imaginations. Framed with a boilerplate introduction to makerspaces and standard safety messages and materials lists, each volume offers stepped project directions illustrated with clear photos; useful "tip" sidebars appear throughout. Younger crafters may need some adult help, but they'll be motivated. Glos., ind. Review covers these Checkerboard Library: Cool Makerspace titles: Make It Yourself! Paper Pop-Up Art, Make It Yourself! Bots & Circuits, Make It Yourself! Collages & Sculptures, Make It Yourself! From Junk to Jewelry, Make It Yourself! Coloring & Doodling, and Make It Yourself! Comics & Graphic Novels.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo

(4) K-3 Translated by Agathe Joly. Illustrated by Vanessa Hié. In this origin story for Matisse's collage The Parakeet and the Mermaid, a mermaid stranded in a tree is saved by a parakeet cum human-bird-hybrid prince. The storytelling is rather sentimental, but Hié's cutouts (reworked with pencil and painting), while less abstract, capably echo Matisse's vibrant palette. A reproduction of the source painting and contextual and biographical information are appended.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(4) K-3 Translated by Jan Michael. Van Haeringen makes creative use of bold primary colors and white space to reconstruct the world of Henri Matisse as he endures a mobility-reducing illness late in life and creates collages with cut paper. The text, translated from the Dutch, is less successful, with odd phrasing and a reliance on invented dialogue; a biographical note adds value. Not as strong as Jeanette Winter's Henri's Scissors.

Reviewer: Christina Dorr

(3) 4-6 This large, attractive book introduces art techniques, from practices that will probably be familiar to budding artists, such as drawing, collage, and watercolor, to those that may be new to them: fresco, printing/woodcut, assemblage, installation, and more. Famous examples of their applications, tips for trying them out, activity ideas, and "test your knowledge" questions will help cement understanding. Timeline. Glos.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(2) K-3 Winter focuses on Henri Matisse's later life, during which the painter took up collage and discovered the magic he could make with scissors. Winter's text is straightforward and unflowery, and she includes quotes from the artist regarding this revelation. Winter relies, successfully, on the strength of her own art to capture the essence of Matisse's; cut paper is integrated into the illustrations.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2013

(3) K-3 Start with Art series. With only two sentences per page, these are very simple introductions to some types of visual arts for young children. Illustrations include reproductions of famous works in different styles. Photos show children painting, drawing, and making collages, helping readers see connections between the featured art and possibilities for their own creative work, as well as providing inspiration and encouraging expressiveness. Websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Start with Art titles: Collages, Drawing, and Painting.

Reviewer: Paula M. Cairo