#Book themaker skin

The ribbons gently bring Noah home, setting him down under the same thinking tree where he began.

Cowman’s gusty wisps show each stream of air turning a different jewel tone, swirling all around. In a chase that has a slight element of danger-wind, after all, is unpredictable-Noah runs down streets, across bridges, near a highway, until the wind lifts him off his feet. When the wind comes whistling by, where does it go? Noah decides to find out. But there is one question the books do not explain. Noah has endless curiosity about how and why things work. And if he puts his nose to the ground, he can smell the “green tang of the ants in the grass.” His most favorite thing of all, however, is to read. Noah can see patterns in the dust when it sparkles in the sunlight. Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.Ī young boy sees things a little differently than others. Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths-otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road” a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. This is more than just a book about making and engineering: Make an excellent choice to add this to the shelves.Įllis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”

#Book themaker skin

The unnamed protagonist has brown skin and long, dark braids her friend presents white. Together the text and the illustrations create an excellent read that will empower readers to reflect on their own lives and make a change or two or three. The pictures capture a child’s imagination and how ordinary things can be made into something extraordinary. Vukovic uses mixed media, including watercolors and crayon, to create lively, striking illustrations. Including themes of creativity, imagination, music, engineering, relationships, economics, and community service, she creates a powerful message about making choices to be proud of. Howes speaks to readers in rhyming verse about the many things they can make, intentionally repeating the verb throughout. Finally, they make a choice to help more in order to make a difference in their community. Working together, they make a lemonade stand and then make a donation to the local park. When she ventures outside, she makes a new friend.

“Ask yourself this question in the morning when you wake: / in a world of possibilities, today, what will you make?” Upon waking up, a young girl uses her imagination and things she has at home to make a tower, a drum set, and a spaceship. Follow along as a child makes a spaceship, a friend, and a difference in her community.