Eisenstein: A documentary portrait - Hardcover

Swallow, Norman

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0047910348 ISBN 13: 9780047910340

Publisher: Allen and Unwin, 1976

Synopsis

Of all the pioneers of the cinema, the Soviet film director Sergei Eisenstein has exerted the most enduring hold on the popular imagination. This book offers a unique portrait of the director based on the personal recollections of those who knew him. Originally published in 1976, it is illustrated with over forty photographs, stills and drawings, among them Eisenstein’s delightful childhood sketches and some of his designs for the theatre and the cinema.

The recollections were mostly originally recorded by Norman Swallow for a film made for the BBC over a period of two years in Moscow, Leningrad, Riga and Odessa, as well as in Western Europe and the USA. The result is a vivid composite portrait of one of the greatest, as well as one of the most controversial, figures in the history of the cinema.

About this title

About the Author:

Alison Jackson is the award-winning author of I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie and The Ballad of Valentine. She lives in Orlando, Florida.

Janet Pedersen is a book designer and artist as well as the illustrator of a growing number of picture books. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

From Booklist:

When her teacher assigns a “Future Scientist Project,” Thea gets right to work, planting a seed in her front yard and observing what happens next. Puzzled by unexpected developements such as bubbling dirt, phenomenal vertical growth of a tree-like plant, and the sudden appearance of an egg, a harp, and coins apparently made of gold, Thea writes to local experts, from a botanist to a banker to a tree removal firm. The story is told through her letters, which put forth theories about what’s happening, as well as the experts’ replies. Adding greatly to the deadpan humor are Pedersen’s ink-and-watercolor illustrations, which feature distinctive, craggy lines and pleasing hues. As the story progresses, the scenes at Thea’s home grow increasingly frantic, contrasting nicely with the formal tone of her letters. Children who know their folktales will figure out the plant’s identity before the end, but anyone can enjoy the chaos created in this amusing picture book. Grades 1-3. --Carolyn Phelan

About this edition

• Publisher: Allen and Unwin
• Publication date: 1976
• ISBN 10: 0047910348
• ISBN 13: 9780047910340
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 155