Washington Post Book Reviews
For You
Wednesday October 20, 2010
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THE SECRET CAVE: Discovering Lascaux
Emily Arnold McCully
Farrar Straus and Giroux
ISBN 978 0 374 36694 0
NA pages
$16.99
Reviewed by Abby McGanney Nolan
Kids find the darndest things, and sometimes the oldest things. Back in 1940, while World War II was raging to the north and west, four French boys went looking for long-lost gold and instead came upon the astonishing, now world-famous cave paintings of Lascaux. In "The Secret Cave," Caldecott Medal-winner Emily Arnold McCully reconstructs this exciting episode through engaging watercolor illustrations that capture the bright beauty of the craggy French countryside, the dank unknown as the boys made their way through narrow underground passages, and the stirring ancient art that the boys' dim lights suddenly revealed. Her versions of the cave paintings are wonderfully evocative of the real things in both tone and texture. The boys enlisted a few trusted adults to verify their discovery, barricaded the entrance and slept there in tents for months, determined that no one would harm the paintings, which had been sealed off for 17,000 years. (Other nearby sites had their paintings faded by water and their walls defaced by people who didn't understand their age and value.) Although McCully invents the story's dialogue, she stays close to the facts and ends with a helpful author's note discussing the cave's subsequent history and significance, as well as the boys' involvement in World War II.
Copyright 2010 Washington Post Writers Group
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WHAT HAPPENED ON FOX STREET
Tricia Springstubb
Balzer (plus sign) Bray
ISBN 978 0 06 198635 2
NA pages
$15.99
Reviewed by Mary Quattlebaum
Mo Wren, 10, loves the rather ramshackle street where she lives. The houses are "smooshed close together but in a nice way, like friendly people in a crowded elevator." On Fox Street the neighbors look out for motherless Mo, her younger sister, Dottie, and her restless dreamer of a dad. And what endearing, believable neighbors! You can almost feel them breathing on the page: outspoken Da, her best friend's grandmother; "spooky old" Mrs. Steinbott, with her odd gifts; and even a fox whose presence Mo senses in the scrubby woods nearby. Suddenly, though, the "necessary evil" of real estate development looms, and Mo angrily discovers her father's involvement in a shady buyout. How can he destroy their home? Uproot their neighbors? Readers, too, will care what happens to these lovingly drawn characters even as Mo confronts inevitable change. Author Tricia Springstubb also brings to a surprising resolution a number of subplots involving lonely Mrs. Steinbott, the fox and wild-child Dottie. Among today's many angst-ridden tales, this big-hearted novel stands out for its portrayal of connection and kindness. The opposite of "necessary evil," Mo reflects at one point, may be "unnecessary good": small acts of thoughtfulness; the fox's wild beauty; Dottie's buttercup, rose and beer-bottle garden. Mo's example encourages readers of "What Happened on Fox Street" to watch for, and perhaps even create, their own bits of unnecessary good.
Copyright 2010 Washington Post Writers Group
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