The Fairview Review

Sunday, April 21, 2024

Spring Reading 2024 Up Periscope! How Engineer Raye Montague Revolutionized Shipbuilding

Award-winning author and Navy veteran Jennifer Swanson has a love for science and STEM that goes back to her own elementary school years. Those interests and experiences converge in a delightful way in this picture book exploration of the career of engineer Raye Montague. From her first visit to a submarine in 1943 to her final assignment designing a submarine for the U.S. Navy, readers will see Raye overcome one obstacle after another.

The author was able to interview Raye Montague about her experiences and how she worked to meet her goals despite the limitations placed in the way of Black women who were interested in science and math. Raye persevered and became a third-generation college graduate, learned to program the UNIVAC computer, and even invented a way to have a computer design an entire naval ship - not just separate ship's systems as others were doing at that time.

Many may recognize the style of illustrator Veronica Miller Jamison (A Computer Called Katherine). The changing fashions and hairstyles help to show the time periods in various scenes. Readers may also see the enormous banks of machines with their reels of magnetic tape that made up the UNIVAC. The end papers at the back of the book even show the design for the USS Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate Raye's computer program created.

"No one thought a woman could do it.

No one thought a Black woman could do it.

But Raye Montague

became the first person to do it."

Back matter includes more information about Raye Montague and an author's note. This book is the perfect addition to library collections - it can be used in units for Black History Month, Women's History Month, biography projects, and STEM careers. Due out this November - so put it on your wish list now!

Spring Reading 2024 To Dogs, With Love: A Love Letter to the Dogs Who Help Us

Maria Gianferrari fans know that she can write a delightful dog story. Just think back to Hello Goodbye Dog or the Penny and Jelly adventures and you will see what I mean. And now there is this incredible look at all the ways dogs comfort, support, and bring us joy. Text explores the various features of dogs and how they help out in so many ways. For instance, "Thank you for your noses...They sniff out sadness, Show us gladness." Or, "Thank you for your tongues...Your kisses help us Accept what we've lost, Hold close what remains."

Illustrations capture the action as a diverse range of children snuggle up to dogs of all breeds in a variety of settings. Kids read aloud to a Dalmatian in a corner of the library. A courtroom support dog helps a child cope with the stress of being in the witness box. A large Saint Bernard keeps a child company in the hospital. Some dogs dwarf the child they accompany, others are small enough to carry. A busy spread shows a dog shelter fundraiser with pavilions for activities such as reading with a dog, pet adoption, or shopping for a dog sweater.

Back matter includes a note on therapy dogs in general, details about the Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry (one of the organizations that inspired the book), and URLs to visit for more information about various types of therapy dogs. Thumbnail images from within the book accompany bullet points about the types of support these amazing animals can offer.

Thursday, April 18, 2024

Virtual Book Tour Else B. in the Sea: The Woman Who Painted the Wonders of the Deep

ABOUT THE BOOK

Else B. in the Sea: The Woman Who Painted the Wonders of the Deep

Written by Jeanne Walker Harvey

Illustrated by Melodie Stacey

Ages 5-7 | 32 Pages

Publisher: Cameron Kids/ Abrams Books | ISBN-13: 9781949480283

Publisher’s Book Summary: A poetic picture book biography about a daring and pioneering woman artist that combines themes of art and science. A perfect STEAM book!

Else Bostelmann donned a red swimsuit and a copper diving helmet and, with paints and brushes in hand, descended into the choppy turquoise sea off the coast of Bermuda. It was 1930, and few had ventured deep into the sea before. She discovered a fairyland six fathoms below the surface—fantastic coral castles, glittering sunbeams, swaying sea plumes, and slender purple sea fans. And fish! Flashy silverfish, puckering blue parrotfish, iridescent jellyfish. Else painted under the sea! She painted what she saw with her own eyes.

Back on land, Else painted the never-before-seen deep-sea creatures described by world-renowned scientist William Beebe on his momentous 1930s bathysphere expeditions for the New York Zoological Society’s Department of Tropical Research. It was a daring and glamorous adventure and a dream come true for Else B., who shared this new, unfathomable world with humankind.

PURCHASE LINK

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Bookshop.org

MY REVIEW

This delightful picture book biography of Else Bostelmann portrays her dedication to creating the most faithful and accurate images of deep-sea life possible. Readers see her climbing down the ladder from the boat and donning the enormous diving helmet that supplied her with air. She almost seems to be another colorful tropical fish in her red swimsuit. Although she was only a few fathoms below the surface (unlike Beebe’s much deeper journeys), she was able to observe how the perception of colors shifted as one traveled deeper and deeper from the ocean’s surface. This helped her create lifelike illustrations of the creatures that Beebe observed and described.

The text describes the determination and ingenuity of Else. Since she wouldn’t be in the bathysphere, she found a way to experience the underwater environment that was within her reach by using a diving helmet. She also invented ways to paint underwater so that she could capture the shapes and colors of sea life. Back on dry land she took the time to study creatures “trawled from the depths” to see their shimmer and glow before it faded and also observed their anatomy under a microscope. The illustrations capture the “magical fairyland” of coral reefs, sea fans, and “blue, shadowy silhouettes.” When the story reaches the point that Else is creating the paintings to be used in National Geographic, the images faithfully reproduce her style. There is a stunning double-page spread with fifteen different fish shown and labeled against an inky background. Endpapers show a map of the area around Bermuda and Nonsuch Island where Else and Beebe did their work. Back matter includes an author’s note with more details about Else and her work, a photo of Else at her desk with her microscope, and two of the images she painted. There are also explanations of bioluminescence, the underwater color spectrum, and how to convert fathoms to feet or meters. A list of selected sources is included. This is a great STEAM title. I would pair this with Secrets of the Sea: The Story of Jeanne Power, Revolutionary Marine Scientist or Otis and Will Discover the Deep: The Record-Setting Dive of the Bathysphere to give young readers more insight into oceanic exploration.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeanne Walker Harvey is the author of many award-winning picture books, including Boats on the Bay, as well as the well-received picture book biographies Ablaze with Color: A Story of Painter Alma Thomas and Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines. She lives in Sonoma, California.

For more information, visit https://www.jeanneharvey.com

https://www.instagram.com/jeannewharvey/

https://twitter.com/JeanneWHarvey

https://www.pinterest.com/JeanneWalkerHarvey/

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

Melodie Stacey is a fine artist and illustrator whose work can be found in the picture book Beautiful Useful Things. She lives in Brighton, United Kingdom.

TOUR SCHEDULE

Thursday, April 18, 2024

The Children’s Book Review