Little People, BIG DREAMS series: VINCENT VAN GOGH, great troubled artist, & ROALD DAHL, great troubling writer

VINCENT VAN GOGH
MARIA ISABEL SÁNCHEZ VEGARA (Little People,BIG DREAMS series; illus. Alette Straathof)
Frances Lincoln Children's Books
$15.99 hardcover, available now

Rating: 5* of five

The Publisher Says: Learn about the life of Vincent van Gogh, one of the world's most influential and best-loved artists.

Little Vincent was a quiet child. He loved spending time in nature and playing with his brother Theo. After leaving school, he began working as an art dealer. Vincent showed promise, but he found it more and more difficult to control his emotions and eventually had to leave. He had a go at many different jobs, including a teacher and a bookseller, but nothing felt right.

When he wasn’t working, he wrote Theo long letters that included beautiful drawings. Theo loved his work and suggested that he try being an artist. Vincent dedicated himself to painting and never looked back! He developed his own style and expressed his emotions through his art: from sorrow to joy, and everything in between.

During his life, Vincent had little success, but today, his paintings are admired and celebrated in galleries across the world.

This powerful book features stylish and quirky illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of the artist's life.

Little People, BIG DREAMS is a bestselling biography series for kids that explores the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists and activists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream.

This empowering series of books offers inspiring messages to children of all ages, in a range of formats. The board books are told in simple sentences, perfect for reading aloud to babies and toddlers. The hardcover and paperback versions present expanded stories for beginning readers. With rewritten text for older children, the treasuries each bring together a multitude of dreamers in a single volume. You can also collect a selection of the books by theme in boxed gift sets. Activity books and a journal provide even more ways to make the lives of these role models accessible to children.

Inspire the next generation of outstanding people who will change the world with Little People, BIG DREAMS!

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: You don't need to be told who van Gogh is. (I hope.) A kid who's got the world to learn does, and here's a way for you to help that happen. A series like this has so many good layers: facts about the world, facts about life as others lead it, examples of what we as a culture value.

The value here is obvious, I trust:

Gorgeous as artworks, pitch perfect as illustrations of van Gogh's life...which is ably recounted by Sánchez Vegara's simple but effective text...this small person's excellent introduction to the life of one of the present day's most venerated artists adds luster to a terrific series.

Worth reading yourself. An absolute must for your grand/nibling's education in art, biography, and the value of being Different in a conformist world.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++


ROALD DAHL
MARIA ISABEL SÁNCHEZ VEGARA Little People,BIG DREAMS series; illus. Francis Martin)
Frances Lincoln Children's Books
$15.99 hardcover, available now

Rating: 5* of five

The Publisher Says: Discover the life of Roald Dahl, the groundbreaking author whose work is beloved by children all over the world.

Little Roald grew up in the city of Cardiff in Wales. He loved to spend time reading with his family and visiting the local candy store for yummy chocolatey treats. But he found school difficult. No one believed in Roald’s potential.

When Roald finished school, he was ready to make his life an adventure! He traveled the world and saw some amazing sights. When World War II started, he was ready to serve his country and joined the air force. During his service, his plane crashed over a desert, leaving him blind for a period of time. Roald wrote about his experience of the crash, and enjoyed doing it so much that from then on, he knew he wanted to be an author.

Roald began crafting books for children, working away in the shed at the bottom of his garden. From Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to James and the Giant Peach, his wonderful stories have captivated generations of readers. The magical worlds he created have been brought to the stage and screen, with hit musicals and films, like Matilda and The Witches.

The story also boldly addresses the antisemitic remarks that Roald Dahl made during his lifetime, highlighting the power and impact that our words can have: both to delight or cause lasting harm.

This thoughtful book features quirky illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of Roald’s life. His story shows that extraordinary talent lies within each and every one of us.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: From the beginning, we're in possession of the facts of Dahl's troubling life. He was very much not a nice man, even by the lax standards of the day; he was hateful, and cruel to his wives, he wrote truly awful stereotypes into his books for children, and let's not discuss his adult fiction at all. Given the delight his children's books have brought on page and screen, it feels only right to introduce the children who will be in his audience to the real man.

To do it honestly and without tendentious vilification, and in conjunction with æsthetically pleasing artwork, shows me how much thought and effort Quarto's children's imprint has put into this series of essential cultural figures' biographies.

Such a great match between illustrations and subject! Tey look like they could be from Dahl's heyday in the 1950s and 1960s. They're fresh, original, and in great keeping with the ethos Dahl worked within.

Perfect for introducing those too young to get his work delivered directly to the ideas of it. Even better for those who have had some of his work read to them already to him as a person, as they can read it themselves. I remain troubled by Dahl and his unpleasant personality, and I'd recommend to you the giver of the book to check with the recipient's parents to be positive this body of work is acceptable for their child before committing even this minimal amount to procuring it.