Two Friends: Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass
Reviews
New York Times
“A visit by Frederick Douglass to the home of Susan B. Anthony is at the center of this charming book about the intersection of women’s rights and African-American rights. The husband-and-wife illustration team of Qualls and Alko blend lovely, lush painting and an elegant layer of text art, with regal streams of smudgy handwritten words and snippets of vintage print.” Read more.
USA Today
“Two Friends is remarkably light on its feet, the composition of the pages lively and dynamic and the political figures rendered with high-beam charm.” Read more.
San Francisco Chronicle
“A thought-provoking reverie. Stylized mixed-media art provides period detail, warmth, and inspiration.” Read more.
School Library Journal
“Repeated phrases eloquently underscore the parallels between their lives, emphasizing how both Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass dared to think differently, spoke their hearts despite opposition, and worked tirelessly for a better world. Set against handsomely textured backgrounds, Sean Qualls and Selina Alko’s mixed-media paintings blend historical details with winsome touches.” Read more.
All the Wonders
‘Two Friends’ strikes just the right balance of informational and inspirational, connecting the struggles of women and black Americans to achieve equal rights under the law. The book deftly introduces the history of slavery, suffrage, and civil rights movements in ways young children can easily understand. It is the kind of book that helps build children with compassion, children able to see the inner similarities between people outwardly different, children who realize that doing what is right can be a long, hard struggle.” Read more.
Shelf Awareness
“Dean Robbins’ charming picture book depicts the true story of the historic friendship between two of America’s greatest 19th-century civil rights pioneers. Husband-and-wife team Sean Qualls and Selina Alko’s warm gouache, acrylic and colored pencil, collage-inspired artwork inventively illustrates the power of ideas. The book is an artful, cleverly crafted homage to progressive civil rights leaders as well as an inspiring story of friendship.” Read more.
Interviews
National Public Radio
An interview on “Two the Best of Our Knowledge,” with a reading from the book. Listen here.
Milwaukee Public Radio
An interview on “Lake Effect.” Listen here.
Wisconsin Public Radio
An interview on “Central Time.” Listen here.
Isthmus
“The spare text and evocative illustrations create a world where ideas and words matter and where Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass, alternately scorned and revered by the public, come together for a quiet moment. Dean Robbins succeeds beautifully at creating a mood, and we get the sense that these two fiery figures found strength and renewal in each other’s presence. The masterful illustrations by husband-wife team Sean Qualls and Selina Alko capture the setting and the warmth and energy of the two characters.” Read more.
International Literacy Association
“It’s important that children learn about Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass at an early age, but concepts like abolition and women’s suffrage can be difficult to explain to elementary school students. That’s why I liked the idea of a tea party. If kids have a hard time grasping 150-year-old political issues, I know they can relate to two friends coming together for the grown-up version of a playdate.” Read more.
News
2017 Amelia Bloomer List
The Amelia Bloomer List is a project of the American Library Association. It compiles a list of notable feminist literature for people from birth to age eighteen. Two Friends: Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass is one of 22 early readers chosen for the 2017 list. Read more.
Isthmus
“Jane Hamilton, Kevin Henkes, Dean Robbins, and Laura Dronzek are four friends with books out at the same time. They celebrate the happy coincidence with a literary party.” Read more.
Miss Paul and the President: The Creative Campaign for Women’s Right to Vote
Reviews
School Library Journal
“This picture book biography introduces young readers to Alice Paul, the suffragist and women’s rights activist. Readers will learn of Paul’s fierce efforts to win the right to vote for women, including putting together a parade in Washington, D.C., that upstaged the incoming president, Woodrow Wilson; organizing protesters outside the White House; and directly confronting President Wilson on the matter of women’s suffrage. The author connects these efforts (“making mischief”) to Paul’s wild youth, a time when she sneaked candy, chased chickens, and threw mud balls. Watercolor and color pencil illustrations support this spirited view with lively movement and color as she is shown leading a parade of 8,000 women, sitting in President Wilson’s office and looking him right in the eye, protesting outside the White House gate, and even being hauled off to jail by the police for refusing to leave the grounds. This is an engaging introduction to an important and often neglected historical figure.” –Della Farrell Read more.
“In accessible language, Dean Robbins explains how Alice Paul drew attention to women’s suffrage by staging an elaborate parade in front of the White House, going to prison for the cause, and meeting with President Wilson to garner his support. While the focus of the narrative is on Paul’s work, Robbins weaves in illuminating vignettes about her childhood, including how watching her father go off to vote while her mother stayed at home fed Paul’s growing sense of injustice. Nancy Zhang creates a picture of early 1900s America that is both stylized and elegant, featuring elongated lines and curves and bold colors. A perfect introduction to a notable woman and her fight for a woman’s right to vote.” –Jennifer Prince Read more.
Providence Journal
“What turns a farm girl into a successful political leader? The large, colorful pictures and buoyant text depict Alice Paul’s path and celebrate the suffragists’ success in finally winning the vote. An inspiring story for young activists, feminists, and history buffs.” Read more.
Kirkus Reviews
“In time for the national elections, the story of an ardent early-20th-century fighter for women’s suffrage. The simple narrative ably explains and arouses respect for Alice Paul’s ardor and achievements. The cheery, cartoony illustrations, created in watercolor, colored pencil, and other media, show Paul in her signature floppy purple hat. Endpapers feature illustrated newspaper headlines that set events in context. Useful for discussions about women’s rights and political influence.” Read more.
Shelf Awareness
“This lively, well-paced, dynamically illustrated picture-book biography tells of Alice Paul’s women’s suffrage parade, her meeting with President Woodrow Wilson, her founding of the National Woman’s Party, and her clever brand of mischief-making that landed her in jail but helped get the job done in time for the 1920 election.” Read more.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“Dean Robbins makes clear for a quite young audience through both main narration and endnote that there were very specific obstacles that had to be overcome to extend the vote to women (Congressional action, and the ratification of a Constitutional Amendment), and winning the endorsement of the president was a vital first step. Librarians and educators seeking accessible materials to draw pre-primary children into election year topics will want to consider this.” Read more.
Interviews
Wisconsin State Journal
“Dean Robbins is developing a reputation as a writer of vibrant biographical stories for young children. In Miss Paul and the President, he finds a way to bring the buoyant, determined and charming Alice Paul to life. Illustrator Nancy Zhang gives the main character a joyful presence in her signature purple hat.” Read more.
Book Q&A’s with Deborah Kalb
“Alice Paul waged a six-year campaign to convince President Woodrow Wilson, Congress, and the American public to support women’s suffrage in an age when women weren’t considered smart or sophisticated enough to trust with the vote. She planned parades, petitions, and protests to keep the issue front and center. Most famously, she organized the first picketing of the White House. In other words, she creatively exercised her First Amendment rights.” Read more.
Commentary
USA Today
“The key to introducing young children to Alice Paul is to portray her as a kind of Wonder Woman, wearing her trademark purple hat instead of a tiara. It’s no stretch to see Paul that way, given her quixotic battle against the villains who opposed women’s suffrage. She used a U.S. citizen’s superpower—freedom of speech—to thwart the politicians arrayed against equality.” Read more.
News
2017 Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People is an annual reading list of exceptional books for use in social studies classrooms, selected by social studies educators. Miss Paul and the President: The Creative Campaign for Women’s Right to Vote has been chosen for the 2017 list. Read more.
Margaret and the Moon: How Margaret Hamilton Saved the First Lunar Landing
Reviews
Publishers Weekly
Starred review: “Beginning with Margaret Hamilton’s early life as a curious girl who questioned (and studied) everything, Dean Robbins moves briskly through her career path, from teaching herself how to write computer code to assisting with the 1969 moon landing and other NASA missions. Lucy Knisley’s crisp cartooning approaches Hamilton’s story with reverence for her accomplishments, as well as humor. As the contributions of women in STEM fields gain increased attention and appreciation, Robbins and Knisley deliver an inspiring tribute to a true innovator.” Read more.
Kirkus Reviews
Starred review: “Dean Robbins successfully translates a complicated subject into an engaging text, with just the right amount of scientific information for young readers. Lucy Knisley’s cartoonish illustrations perfectly capture Margaret’s inquisitive spirit while keeping the story light and child-friendly. A superb introduction to the life of one girl whose dreams were out of this world.” Read more.
Smithsonian Air & Space magazine
Best Children’s Books of 2017: “Young readers are sure to be engrossed by the story of NASA’s Margaret Hamilton, who helped develop the on-board flight software for the Apollo space program.” Read more.
Women You Should Know
“Margaret and the Moon tells a crucial hidden story, and does it with wonder and elegance that fit well with the hard-working quiet heroism of its protagonist. The author, Dean Robbins, and illustrator, Lucy Knisley, have found a lovely balance of word and image marching together to achieve precisely the right effect at all times. Robbins’ voice is simple and unaffected, with a delightful ability to move from the scale of the cosmic to the confines of the lone problem solver without feeling out of place in either.” Read more.
A Mighty Girl
“Dean Robbins beautifully depicts the spirit of curiosity that drove computer scientist Margaret Hamilton to success. Robbins highlights the challenges that faced her as a woman in STEM during the middle of the 20th century, but also the determination and talent she offered the space program at a critical point in its development. Illustrations by Lucy Knisley are full of fun details and visual jokes, and also capture the wonders of the night sky.” Read more.
Librarian’s Quest
“Each concise sentence by Dean Robbins compels us to read the next one. His narrative unfolds almost like a mathematical equation, which is ingenious writing. Robbins has selected those things about Margaret Hamilton that increase our admiration for her accomplishments with every page turn. His repetition of certain key phrases generates a gentle storytelling rhythm. ‘Margaret and the Moon’ will promote further investigation about Margaret Hamilton; this is the beauty of a well-written nonfiction picture book.” Read more.
BookPage
“Young readers will love Margaret, with her oversize glasses and can-do attitude. This is a standout tribute to a brilliant, brave female who was unafraid to test the boundaries of her own intelligence and who was awarded in 2016 the Presidential Medal of Freedom.” Read more.
Interviews
Space.com
“Margaret Hamilton told me wonderful stories that no one had ever reported, starting with her love of problem-solving as a child. From an early age, she felt the unfairness of a world in which women had fewer opportunities than men, and she resolved to set things right.” Read more.
WISC-TV (CBS)
“If the name Margaret Hamilton doesn’t ring a bell, you’re not the only one in the dark. But a new children’s book is shedding some light on the little-known hero.” Watch the broadcast at the newscast’s 14:20 mark.
Capital Times
“As a longtime Madison journalist, Dean Robbins loved to chase down a good story. Even though his journalism career ended when he stepped down as editor of Isthmus in 2014, he still chases good stories. But now they have fewer words and a lot more pictures. Robbins has a new career as a children’s book author, turning true-life tales into colorful books that young readers can enjoy.” Read more.
Milwaukee Public Radio
An interview on “Lake Effect.” Listen here.
The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon: The True Story of Alan Bean
Reviews
New York Times
“The astronauts are friendly, relatable characters in Sean Rubin’s jewel-colored, crosshatched artwork, which smooths out narrative shifts with skillfully extended motifs, including aircraft that transform from model airplanes to Air Force fighters to the Apollo 12 rocket as the pages turn. And as in Bean’s paintings, a brilliant palette animates the scenes of space with vibrant, palpable energy. More than an account of a singular figure, Robbins’s notable biography is a beautiful reminder that science and art are a vital combination and, together, can create new understanding.” Read more.
Booklist
Starred review: “As the story of “the only artist ever to see the moon up close,” this is a standout among titles that blend art and science, and it reflects the best aims of STEAM.” Read more.
Kirkus Reviews
Starred review: “A portrait of Alan Bean, the fourth man to walk on the moon and the first to express what that felt like in paint. Inspiring fare for readers who, as the author puts it, dream of becoming ‘brave astronauts,’ ‘great artists,’ or both.” Read more.
Shelf Awareness
“Of the many space books timed for the moon landing anniversary, The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon: The True Story of Alan Bean stands out for its luminescent illustrations and interdisciplinary appeal. Journalist Dean Robbins worked closely with Bean to bring the artist-astronaut’s story to a wider audience, immersing readers of this picture book biography in the thoughts and perspective of the fourth person to walk on the moon. Robbins’s action-infused text and color-tinged vocabulary shed light on the adrenaline-filled experience.” Read more.
San Francisco Chronicle
“This slim book is packed with a brief Bean bio, breathtaking details about Apollo 12 and how-to tips on painting moonscapes. Before his death in 2018, Bean lent paintings, expertise and passion to this unique slant on moon travel.” Read more.
Interviews
Space.com
“I hope The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon helps spread the word about the one-of-a-kind hero Alan Bean. He’s a lesser-known astronaut, despite being the fourth person to walk on the moon, the first artist in space and one of the most extraordinary figures in human history. If a new generation grows up wanting to be as creative and courageous as Capt. Bean, I’ll feel that I did my duty.” Read more.
Wisconsin State Journal
“Part of the reason I wanted to write The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon is to exalt the role of an artist. Science got astronauts to the moon, but it took an artist to express what it felt like to be up there — to provide images that people could relate to. I think the book shows the unique role of an artist in expressing a perspective on an experience — in this case, the incredible experience of leaving Earth behind for a strange new world.” Read more.
Isthmus
Alan Bean was still alive when Dean Robbins began the book, and Robbins admits to feeling intimidated about reaching out to the astro-artist. So first he created a draft manuscript, gained a publisher’s interest, and only then tried to contact — well — the fourth man to walk on the moon. “Even though I’ve been a journalist for years, and I’ve interviewed people like Ella Fitzgerald, Yoko Ono and Robert Redford, I was extremely shy about Alan Bean,” he says. Read more.
Mr. Schu Reads
“Apollo 12 astronaut Alan Bean always observed his surroundings from an artist’s perspective, taking drawing classes even while training as a pilot. On his excursion to the moon, he noticed visual details as no other astronaut could. Back home, he devoted himself to painting his odyssey—in other words, to showing fellow earthlings how it felt to walk on another world. On the cover of The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon, illustrator Sean Rubin powerfully expresses with line and color what I just took many words to explain. Like Alan Bean, he evokes the magic and mystery of the universe in a single visionary image.” Read more.
Madison Magazine
“Sadly, Alan Bean didn’t get to see the finished version of The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon before he died last spring. But he did get to read my final manuscript. In the last note he sent me, he said something I will always cherish and will always keep in my astronaut scrapbook. The email simply said, in all caps, “HELLO DEAN, THIS IS BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN. ALAN.” Yes, I can die happy.” Read more.
Commentary
Space.com
Alan Bean was the only artist to travel to the moon. While other astronauts brought back lunar rocks and soil, he brought back a visual interpretation.
Bean toiled over Impressionist-style canvases picturing the lunar surface, astronauts in action, and Earth from 240,000 miles — not as they look in photographs, but as they looked through one man’s eyes.
Why didn’t he simply rest on his laurels as one of 12 humans to set foot on the lunar surface? I learned the answer while collaborating with him on the children’s picture book “The Astronaut Who Painted the Moon: The True Story of Alan Bean.” Read more.
News
Publishers Weekly
Chicago Daily Herald
“Dean Robbins’ lively presentation at Arlington Heights Memorial Library stressed not only the significance of space travel, but also the important role art can play in helping people express themselves.” Read more.
Thank You, Dr. Salk!: The Scientist Who Beat Polio and Healed the World
Reviews
Kirkus Reviews
An engaging blend of history, biography, science, and epidemiology that is sure to inspire and inform. This is a great choice for allaying vaccination fears, communicating the importance of science and medicine, showing that heroes come in many forms, and explaining that education, creativity, resilience, and dedication can lead to achievements and concrete results. Read more.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Dean Robbins’ biography is particularly timely within the context of the coronavirus epidemic, and his direct, streamlined account connects well with early primary listeners, who may take some comfort in knowing that science has managed to get other epidemics under control. Read more.
Commentary
New York Daily News
Imagine citizens pulling together to defeat a deadly virus rather than turning against one another in a culture war. Imagine politicians helping the process rather than hindering it. Imagine the scientist who leads the charge receiving adulation rather than abuse.
In other words, imagine the fight against polio compared to our current response to the novel coronavirus. Read more.
Wisconsin Public Radio
Decades before COVID-19, there was an epidemic story with a happy ending. During the 20th century, Americans pulled together to defeat the polio virus, putting their faith in scientists and public-health guidelines. Wisconsin played a part in this heroic effort. Read more.
Interviews
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
“As a writer, Madison’s Dean Robbins is having a grand slam kind of year. By the time 2021 ends, he will have published four children’s books, all historical or biographical nonfiction on American subjects. A former editor-in-chief of Madison’s Isthmus alt-weekly, Robbins’ career writing for children began more than a decade ago, and required the same kind of sticktoitiveness that some of his subjects had.” Read more.
Wisconsin State Journal
“Jonas Salk stands as an example of science’s potential for healing the world. He helped the public trust in the scientific method and got millions of people to volunteer to test the vaccine. That communal effort is the book’s centerpiece — a suggestion of what we can accomplish when we all work together.” Read more.
The Fastest Girl on Earth!: Meet Kitty O’Neil, Daredevil Driver!
Reviews
School Library Journal
Starred review: Speed! Action! Excitement! This incredible biography shares the adventures of daredevil and record breaker Kitty O’Neil. The illustrations are colorful and detailed, which will keep children engaged and support comprehension. The book provides excellent representation of the deaf community as well as of a woman in sports. Highly recommended. Read more.
Publishers Weekly
Bursting with clouds of dust and rocket flames, realistic mixed-media spreads by Elizabeth Baddeley deliver concentrated energy to this picture biography of sportswoman Kitty O’Neil. Robbins’s portrait moves as quickly as O’Neil did, bringing readers’ attention to a woman focused on excellence and undaunted by obstacles. Read more.
Interviews
Wisconsin State Journal
“The book is about one of the bravest women in American history. Kitty O’Neil was always obsessed with going faster than anyone in everything she did. Her land-speed record alone stood for over 40 years. She accomplished these remarkable feats after losing her hearing as a child.” Read more.
News
Publishers Weekly
Mambo Mucho Mambo! The Dance That Crossed Color Lines
Reviews
Booklist
Starred review: Young readers will be pulled into 1940s New York, a time of segregation where it was frowned upon for people from different neighborhoods and cultures to mingle. But something exciting was happening in the city: a new music style blending Latin and jazz was being born, with lively, vibrant tunes that sent a thrill through listeners, encouraging them to dance. The text is both conversational and informative, using such lively verbs, such as “jiggled,” “rumbled,” and “swiveled,” which will allow readers to feel the electricity of this music and dance move as they read. Read more.
Publishers Weekly
“Dean Robbins’s prose is as musical as his subject. Eric Velasquez’s characteristic, near-photorealistic illustrations, rendered in oil paint in a palette reflecting the time, add a dynamic fluidity to the historical atmosphere of this enlightening narrative nonfiction title.” Read more.
Los Angeles Times
A Guide to Storytime is an annual bilingual reading guide for parents and educators. It supports young kids as they develop their reading and literacy skills, which are crucial for future academic success. Read more.
Interviews
Wisconsin State Journal
“It’s about a little-known moment in the history of desegregation in the 1940s and ‘50s, when the Palladium Ballroom in New York City struck a blow against racism by welcoming people of all backgrounds to listen to Latin jazz and dance the mambo. An interracial couple named Millie and Pedro met on the Palladium dance floor, fell in love, and became the world’s best mambo team, anticipating the civil rights movement.” Read more.
You Are a Star, Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Reviews
Jewish Book Council
Condensing the most important events and influences in Ginsburg’s life, and presenting them through first-person narration and dramatic pictures, Robbins and Green have designed an accessible format for young Ginsburg fans. From the cover to the last page, a core theme is autonomy. The young Ruth Bader was aware of injustice from a young age, convinced that she could play a role in combating it. She certainly did not accept defeat; Robbins is focused on distilling this crucial aspect of her attitude so that children will understand its power. Each sentence is carefully crafted to ensure appreciation of the barriers that Ginsburg faced and her determination to overcome them. Sarah Green’s illustrations progress with the feeling of a family album, depicting Ginsburg from childhood to old age. Her devotion to family, career, and the American people seems a natural and viable choice in this appealing children’s book. Read more.
Kirkus Reviews
Conversational first-person narration, inset graphics, fact boxes, and appealing digital illustrations combine to paint a well-rounded picture of Ruth Bader Ginsburg from childhood to adulthood. A warm, informative, and entertaining biography of a pioneering scholar, lawyer, and judge. Read more.
Interviews
Forbes
Even with the book’s lighthearted tone, I hope it makes children adore the Constitution’s promise of equal rights, the way Ruth Bader Ginsburg did as a teenager. I also hope it inspires them to join the effort in making good on that promise, the way Ruth did as an adult. In this version of her story, young readers will see a woman fight injustice and work respectfully with her opponents for the common good. The more kids who follow in her footsteps, the better our world will be–and in the book’s back matter, there’s a guide for doing just that. Read more.
Publishers Weekly
Dean Robbins has a history of writing from the heart. “I tend to fall in love with certain historical figures, reading everything about them, putting their pictures on my wall, and visiting the places where they lived,” the author explained. “As a result, they begin to feel like family to me. My inspiration for writing this series was to make young readers feel the same way. Rather than seeing people like Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Jane Goodall as distant, iconic characters—like statues on a pedestal—they’ll view them as friendly, funny, down-to-earth people they can emulate.” Read more.
Wisconsin Public Radio
The art of writing nonfiction picture books about historical figures and sometimes difficult subjects. Listen.
Madison Magazine
It could easily be mistaken for overnight success, or a sudden career pivot: longtime Madison journalist and former Isthmus editor-in-chief Dean Robbins publishing four children’s books in the past year. But it’s really just the latest chapter in a story that started 20 years ago — one that almost wasn’t written at all. Read more.
Isthmus
You Are a Star, Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the first title in the new You Are a Star series that Robbins created with Scholastic. The second book, starring scientist and chimpanzee expert Jane Goodall, will be published in spring 2023. Adhering to a nontraditional picture book structure that includes a mix of first-person narrative, humorous comic panels, and essential facts, Robbins presents multiple facets of the late U.S. Supreme Court justice’s life and personalizes her lifelong mission of striving for equality and justice. Read more.
You Are a Star, Jane Goodall
Op-Ed Article
New York Daily News
Jane Goodall has insisted that, despite countless self-inflicted catastrophes, homo sapiens might have a bright future on this planet. From a scientist with no illusions about primate behavior, it’s a startlingly optimistic vision. Read more.
Interview
Capital Times
The details and anecdotes humanize people who might seem larger-than-life to young readers. Robbins writes in first person, and the pages are crammed with sidebars and two-panel comic strips brimming with interesting details. Read more.
Review
Kirkus Reviews
A warm testimonial to the life and achievements of Jane Goodall, one of the world’s most renowned scientists. Read more.
You Are a Star, Malala Yousafzai
Review
Kirkus Reviews
“An inspirational look at a young girl’s path to activism … A rousing biography that examines its subject’s motivations to serve others.” Read more.
The Fastest Drummer: Clap Your Hands for Viola Smith!
Reviews
The Horn Book
Starred review: Robbins’s biography skillfully focuses on the pivotal moments in Viola Smith’s career: from her childhood in small-town Wisconsin to the formation of her own band, the Coquettes, to her classical timpani training. Chapman’s upbeat illustrations create movement, sound, and emotion constantly swirling around “the fastest girl drummer in the world.” With a decidedly mid-century feel, the art reverberates with Smith’s active enthusiasm, with ripples from cymbals, starbursts from the bass drum, and twirling lines that trace the paths of her perpetually in-motion mallets. Robbins and Chapman collectively convey the vivacity and joy of this exceptional musician, and back matter further describes Smith’s advocacy for women in music. Read more.
“Calling Caldecott” post: A picture book is a whole package, every square inch valuable real estate. And illustrator Susanna Chapman wastes none of that real estate as she lays the land for author Dean Robbins’s spare lyrical text. Together both text and art reveal Viola’s passion, intensity, and musicality. Read more.
Kirkus Reviews
Starred review: Pulsing with energy, this lively book shines a much-deserved spotlight on an artist who became renowned playing an instrument most commonly associated with men. Appropriately, onomatopoeic words representing the sounds of drum crashes cavort playfully throughout the eye-popping watercolor, gouache, cut-paper, and digital illustrations. Bang the drums—loudly—for this arresting account of a gifted virtuoso. Read more.
Interview
The Horn Book
“From a young age, Viola Smith was determined to pursue her passion, leap over obstacles, and open doors for others. I can’t imagine a more inspiring story for children.” Read more.
The Shape of Things: How Mapmakers Picture Our World
Reviews
Geo Librarian
This gorgeous, informative book explains in as clear a way as I’ve ever seen what a map is, why they are important, and how the way they are made has changed over millennia. Highlighting a few of the many maps created throughout earth’s human history, Robbins shares with young readers how people have created maps using a variety of different materials such as mammoth tusk, rock, sand, papyrus, paper, and computer. Tavares’ digital illustrations are stunning in their beauty as they complement Robbins’ straightforward text. A fabulous book about the value of knowing where you are and the power of maps and mapmaking. Read more.