A Closer Look

by Mary McCarthy, Mary McCarthy (Illustrator)

Overview

Open your eyes.

Open your mind.

Open your imagination.

Look!

What do you see?

Mary McCarthy's beautiful handmade-paper collages will transport young children on a journey of discovery.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780061240737
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	08/21/2007
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	9.50(w) x 10.38(h) x 0.25(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Mary McCarthy's one-of-a-kind and limited edition artist's books have been collected by private collectors and major institutions across the United States, including the Library of Congress and the National Museum of Women in the Arts. She has taught bookmaking and she is the co-author of the popular manual Making Books by Hand. Mary McCarthy lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

Mary McCarthy's one-of-a-kind and limited edition artist's books have been collected by private collectors and major institutions across the United States, including the Library of Congress and the National Museum of Women in the Arts. She has taught bookmaking and she is the co-author of the popular manual Making Books by Hand. Mary McCarthy lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

Editorial Reviews

PreS-Gr 2
Beginning with a close-up image of an object, and then progressively pulling back to present a broader view, McCarthy asks readers, "Look! What do you . . . see?" The first spread shows a large black circle against a deep red background, and the illustrations gradually zoom out to reveal a ladybug perched on a leaf. The next series of pictures takes the same approach to depict a colorful cardinal flower, while a third set shows a ruby-throated hummingbird. The final two spreads balance out the book nicely: the first shows two hummingbirds feeding on the flowers while ladybugs crawl on the leaves below, followed by a landscape view featuring a smaller version of this particular plant surrounded by other blooms. Rendered from handmade papers and collage, the bold artwork is elegant and eye-catching. The broad lines, simple graphic images, and textured details suit the magnified perspectives, while the more expansive scenes are beautifully composed. As children take a closer look at the pages, they will enjoy making guesses and experience a sense of discovery that ties in neatly with the book's nature theme. Use this offering to focus observation skills and stimulate imaginations, or pair it with George Shannon's White Is for Blueberry (HarperCollins, 2005) to explore how we perceive the natural world.
—Joy FleishhackerCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Often, we have to step back to see the bigger picture: Step back from a single black spot to see that indeed it is only one of a pair upon a ladybug's back. Retreat further still and see that this bug is just one among many in a fine and colorful garden that was earlier outside our field of vision. Cunningly combed feathering on full-bleed endpapers has quite a different impact when viewed macroscopically from the effect it has when miniaturized to become the delicate plumage of a hummingbird's wing. Step back and see. McCarthy is a papermaker/calligrapher/collage artist whose marvelous hand-made book creations have been privately collected and displayed in eminent institutions for years. She applies her keen sense of color, concept and craft here in a dynamic demonstration of the impact of perspective, which inexorably affects understanding and will challenge young readers to look closer. Add this to Barbara Lehman's The Red Book (2004) and Istvan Banyai's Zoom (1995) for a captivating concept study in the art room, the science lab or for a lesson in visual literacy. (Picture book. 5-10)

Kirkus Reviews