BIBLIOGRAPHY
Stanley, Diane. 2000. MICHELANGELO. NY: HarperCollins. ISBN 0688150861.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Diane Stanley biography presents interesting facts (with bibliography) interspersed with original watercolor, colored pencil and gouache. The illustrations are not prize-winning, but they do flow well with the story. One exception is the Adobe Photoshop-manipulated photos of actual Michelangelo works. Stanley attempts to combine her original work with that of the master, and the effect is a glaring offense to the senses. The sympathy behind the attempts is laudable, but she does not effectively carry out her plan.
The text, on the other hand, is fresh, interesting, and authentic. Stanley manages to convey many facts in a manner that is not overbearing or patronizing. She begins as most biographies do, at the beginning. One interesting point is that very little of the information is of personal nature. Only a couple of times do we get glimpses of Michelangelo the person rather than Michelangelo the artist. Once is when he is referring to his love of architecture. He remarked that it must have come to him along with his foster mother’s milk. Another is later in life when remarking upon his lack of a wife. “I already have a wife who is too much for me; one who keeps me unceasingly struggling on. It is my art, and my works are my children.”
REVIEW EXCERPTS
There is no one like Stanley (Leonardo da Vinci; Joan of Arc) for picture-book biography. She brings to the genre an uncanny ability to clarify and compress dense and tricky historical matter, scrupulous attention to visual and verbal nuances, and a self-fulfilling faith in her readers' intelligence. … Unfortunately, the digital techniques she used to good effect in Leonardo collaging in photos of her subject's work are not successful here. The … effect blemishes an otherwise outstanding work. Ages 8-up. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Publisher’s Weekly
Grade 4-7-As Michelangelo breathed life into stone, Stanley chisels three-dimensionality out of documents. Her bibliography lists original material as well as respected scholarship; from these sources she has crafted a picture-book biography that is as readable as it is useful. … An author's note and map provide historical context, the former explaining the impact of the classical excavations on the Renaissance sensibilities. Integrating Michelangelo's art with Stanley's watercolor, gouache, and colored-pencil figures and settings has the desired effect: readers will be dazzled with the master's ability, while at the same time pulled into his daily life and struggles. … For further information, readers may sample Gabriella Di Cagno's Michelangelo (1996) or Vittorio Giudici's The Sistine Chapel (2000, both Peter Bedrick). For fascinating facts with an attitude, try Veronique Milande's Michelangelo and His Times (Holt, 1996).
Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. -- School Library Journal
Stanley continues her series of outstanding biographies, but this time she puts a new twist on some venerable art by using computer images. One of the most pleasing things about Stanley's books is the way her sturdy texts stand up to her strong artwork. That's particularly evident here, as she tells the story of Michelangelo's turbulent life in a style that is so readable, and occasionally so colloquial, that even children not readily interested in the subject will be drawn in. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association.--Booklist
"...Images of Michelangelo's art are photo-based and computer manipulated, and they're seamlessly integrated into the compositions...an in-depth picture of Michelangelo..." -- -- Bulletin of the Center for Children' s Books
CONNECTIONS
*Collect photographs of all of Michelangelo’s works and have students try to remember which ones they remember from his biography
*Get clay and have students try sculpting
*Collect other Michelangelo biographies and have students compare and contrast the information they find in each
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