The Barnes & Noble Review
The text of the book addresses such things as the right to not be hurt, the right to live and grow, and the right to speak and be heard. Each right is accompanied by a two-page illustration, each one created by a different artist. The end result is a cornucopia of colors, mediums, expressions, and interpretations. The book also offers a highly moving foreword from Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the full text of the highlighted rights in the back of the book. Combine that with the illustrative variety and multi-national flavor, and you have a children's book that will likely enlighten and entertain adults as well. As an added incentive, $1.50 from each book sold will be donated to UNICEF.
--Beth Amos
Published in association with UNICEF, this book presents 14 of the 54 principles adopted at the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and pairs each with illustrations by an international cast of all-stars. On the first spread, text beginning with "Whoever we are, wherever we live, these rights belong to all children under the sun and the moon and the stars" accompanies Rachel Isadora's picture of a multicultural lineup of children. Rendered in black and white, the children each hold an instrument in their hands, and above their heads hovers the "music"--a brightly colored array of abstract shapes. On the next page, Henriette Sauvant supplies a surreal oil painting for "Understand that all children are precious...." Also represented are Babette Cole, with a sprightly watercolor and pastel composition featuring her signature slyly humorous nudies, and Jerry Pinkney, who crafts a contemplative seaside study. From John Burningham to Satoshi Kitamura, Shirley Hughes to P.J. Lynch, the artists present distinctly different styles. In theory, the range of stylistic approaches seems compatible with the global reach of the text; unfortunately, the striking differences tend to detract from the strengths of each composition. The work seems fractured, not in harmony with the unifying message of the text. All ages. (Jan.) FYI: $1.50 per book sold will be donated to UNICEF. Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.
Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly
Fourteen important rights of children everywhere have been retold with simple text and illustrated in a double-page spread by some of the world's most acclaimed artists. Archbishop Desmond Tutu has written the forward. A donation will be made to the U.S. Fund of UNICEF for each book sold. A worthwhile and meaningful family gift. 2001, Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers, $16.99. Ages 5 to 10. Reviewer: C. Henebry SOURCE: Parent Council, September 2001 (Vol. 9, No. 1)
Fourteen of the "most pertinent" rights from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child are retold as if by the children. They are for all children, and include the right to receive care, a place to live, protection from cruelty, sickness, hunger, and war, education, time to play, and freedom of worship. Fourteen artists from several countries each interpret a "right" in double- page scenes that range from Babette Cole's scantily drawn flower boy to Yang Tswei-Yu's dreamy young girl's reflection. Each vision is a personal, powerful response to the text. Muñoz's almost crudely drawn hands are "in our faces," telling us that children must be protected, while Hughes's poignant multiple portraits of youngsters in distress cry out for us to shelter them. The Foreword is by Archbishop Desmond M. Tutu. There is a list of illustrators with brief biographical information, along with the actual text of the featured rights from the UN Convention. From each book sold, $1.50 will be donated to the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. 2001, Phyllis Fogelman Books/Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers, $16.99. Ages 6 up. Reviewer: Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz
PreS-Gr 3-Fourteen of the rights that were formally laid out by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child are highlighted. The book begins with an introduction by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who asks readers to help make a difference. One double-page spread is devoted to each featured tenet, which is illustrated by a different artist. Some of the pictures are bold and dramatic, while others are quiet and subdued. Some are whimsical and others are serious. All bring home the point. Each illustration covers almost the entire spread, with the text on a small strip of white at the bottom. The artists include John Burningham, Shirley Hughes, Rachel Isadora, Satoshi Kitamura, and Jerry Pinkney. The book concludes with biographical sketches of the artists and additional details about the rights.-Kathleen Simonetta, Indian Trails Public Library District, Wheeling, IL Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
