Easter Island: Giant Stone Statues Tell of a Rich and Tragic Past - Hardcover

Arnold, Caroline

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0395876095 ISBN 13: 9780395876091

Publisher: Clarion Books, 2000

Synopsis

In about A.D. 400, a group of seafarers reached a small, isolated island in Polynesia and founded a new settlement. They developed a rich and complex culture that lasted more than a thousand years. The population eventually declined, and soon all that remained were a few inhabitants and hundreds of mysterious giant stone statues in varying stages of disrepair. Caroline Arnold explains how archeologists and other scientists and scholars have pieced together a history of Easter Island by studying its natural resources, listening to family stories and Polynesian legends, and examining the statues and other clues the people left behind. Photographs, taken by the author, provide a stunning visual accompaniment to this clear and concise account of one of the most remote--and fascinating--places on earth. GLOSSARY, BIBLIOGRAPHY, INDEX.

About this title

About the Author

Caroline Arnold always loved books, but as a child she never thought of writing as a career. Born in Pittsburgh, she grew up in Minneapolis and studied art at Grinnell College and the University of Iowa. "It was only after my children were born that I became acquainted with children's books and it occurred to me that I could use my training to become a children's book illustrator. I soon realized that I needed a text to go with the pictures, and the more I wrote, the more I realized that I liked writing as much as or more than drawing. I've always been fascinated by the natural world and love to go to the parks and museums. Perhaps that is why so many of my books are about scientific topics." Arnold is now the award-winning author of more than 100 books for children. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, a neuroscientist, and teaches writing at UCLA Extension. For more information visit www.carolinearnoldbooks.com.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6-Arnold provides a clear and concise look at the island and the many mysteries that surround it, detailing its early settlement, its people and resources, and the rise and fall of its rich and complex civilization. One of the most intriguing questions that remains unanswered is how the ancient Rapanui people carved and erected hundreds of giant stone statues found all over the island. The author carefully explains how scientists have theorized on the early history and how the decimation over time of the island's natural resources and its isolation from trade routes may have led to its decline in population. The book concludes with a quick look at the tourism that is renewing pride in the unique heritage of the few hundred remaining Rapanui people, as the island becomes a model open-air museum. A map is included but it does not begin to convey the remoteness of the area, which is better described by Arnold's text. Several of the full-page color photographs are breathtaking, while smaller pictures illustrate specific points from the text. The glossary includes phonetic pronunciations of Rapanui words and a list of resources includes the Easter Island Web site (which offers more details on the language, music, art, and culture of the island).
Jeanette Larson, Texas State Library, Austin
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Clarion Books
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0395876095
• ISBN 13: 9780395876091
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 48