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Peter Sis
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From: Dean Schneider <schneiderd>
Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2001 17:39:59 -0500
Starry Messenger is one of my favorite picture books for older children. In fact, to take another look at it all I had to do was reach over to my bookcase next to my computer, and there it was, standing up next to a few other treasures in my office here at home. It is such a visually appealing book, from the cover to the endpages to page design and layout. There's something about Peter Sis's art that makes it a perfect match for Galileo and 16th?ntury Italy. Like Tibet and Madlenka, it works on a number of levels, and every time you open the book you can see new things. The narrative of Galileo's life is told in a plain font and written in a clear and lively style. In cursive handwriting, in various designs, are quotations from the Bible, from Shakespeare, and from Galileo himself, and various explanatory notes that enrich the narrative.
The artwork, too, supports,enriches, and extends the text. The early illustrations do an excellent job of contrasting the Ptolemaic and Copernican systems, and sketches of other scientists can lead students to other topics for research. The maps have the feel of ancient maps with their depictions of unusual creatures and symbols. And there's a sense of humor: to show Galileo's birth, we get an illustration of a crowd of babies wrapped in blankets; Galileo is the one whose blanket is covered with stars. In a Brueghel-like painting, depicting children playing many games, we find Galileo drawing stars in the dirt, and we read that "stars were always on his mind."
Peter Sis keeps the focus on the man who didn't "follow tradition," who was willing to ask "What if things are not as everyone believes them to be?" And he takes the reader through the trial, house arrest, to today, when the Church has conceded that Galileo was right. A great example of an historical figure who stayed true to his beliefs in spite of the consequences.
I always like it when one of my students chooses Galileo as a term paper topic, because I get to introduce someone new to one of my favorite books. As Galileo changed the way people saw themselves in relation to their universe, Peter Sis changes the way we see Galileo, and thereby enlarges our world, too.
This is longer than the quick note I intended to write, but I still feel I've only scratched the surface of what's in store for readers new to Starry Messenger.
Dean Schneider Ensworth School Nashville, TN 37205
Received on Mon 04 Jun 2001 05:39:59 PM CDT
Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2001 17:39:59 -0500
Starry Messenger is one of my favorite picture books for older children. In fact, to take another look at it all I had to do was reach over to my bookcase next to my computer, and there it was, standing up next to a few other treasures in my office here at home. It is such a visually appealing book, from the cover to the endpages to page design and layout. There's something about Peter Sis's art that makes it a perfect match for Galileo and 16th?ntury Italy. Like Tibet and Madlenka, it works on a number of levels, and every time you open the book you can see new things. The narrative of Galileo's life is told in a plain font and written in a clear and lively style. In cursive handwriting, in various designs, are quotations from the Bible, from Shakespeare, and from Galileo himself, and various explanatory notes that enrich the narrative.
The artwork, too, supports,enriches, and extends the text. The early illustrations do an excellent job of contrasting the Ptolemaic and Copernican systems, and sketches of other scientists can lead students to other topics for research. The maps have the feel of ancient maps with their depictions of unusual creatures and symbols. And there's a sense of humor: to show Galileo's birth, we get an illustration of a crowd of babies wrapped in blankets; Galileo is the one whose blanket is covered with stars. In a Brueghel-like painting, depicting children playing many games, we find Galileo drawing stars in the dirt, and we read that "stars were always on his mind."
Peter Sis keeps the focus on the man who didn't "follow tradition," who was willing to ask "What if things are not as everyone believes them to be?" And he takes the reader through the trial, house arrest, to today, when the Church has conceded that Galileo was right. A great example of an historical figure who stayed true to his beliefs in spite of the consequences.
I always like it when one of my students chooses Galileo as a term paper topic, because I get to introduce someone new to one of my favorite books. As Galileo changed the way people saw themselves in relation to their universe, Peter Sis changes the way we see Galileo, and thereby enlarges our world, too.
This is longer than the quick note I intended to write, but I still feel I've only scratched the surface of what's in store for readers new to Starry Messenger.
Dean Schneider Ensworth School Nashville, TN 37205
Received on Mon 04 Jun 2001 05:39:59 PM CDT
