Earth, Fire, Water, Air - Hardcover

Hoffman, Mary

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0525454209 ISBN 13: 9780525454205

Publisher: Dutton Juvenile, 1995

Synopsis

Dramatizes the original elements known to the ancient world--earth, fire, water, and air--recounting tales of how these life-giving elements gave rise to legends, gods, heroes, and mythical beasts.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Grade 2-6?A celebration of the magic of earth, fire, water, and air, as well as a plea to readers to right the wrongs progress has wrought on the environment. After a philosophical overview, Hoffman offers stories and images from both Western and non-Western traditions. Each of four sections begins with an introduction to an element and concludes with a look at ways in which modern society has abused it, emphasizing the need for positive strategies to correct these ills. In between are brief pieces that view the element through religious ideas, mythology, and natural disasters and phenomena. Each selection is simple and to the point. Occasional poems, e.g., Carl Sandburg's "Buffalo Dusk" or a Navajo rain chant, give an added dimension to the text. Ray's folk-art pastel and watercolor paintings are especially intriguing. Intricately detailed and illuminated with touches of gold, they provide a cross-cultural panorama of people and creatures throughout the ages, and their symbolism enriches the text. Unfortunately, there are no suggestions for further reading, glossary, or index. Nevertheless, this title will serve as a useful beginning sampler, particularly when in the hands of an adult who can lead an appropriate discussion to expand the basic text.?Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan, LaSalle Academy, Providence, RI
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 3^-7. Hoffman combines history, meteorology, religion, mythology, poetry, ecology, and her own opinions in a highly readable mix. After an introduction discussing the way ancient cultures sorted people out by their resemblance to each of the four elements, she takes each element separately. The water section, for example, includes pages on water as a source of life, on the animals living in it, on Christian miracles associated with it and, on its place in other world religious traditions, such as the Great Flood and Atlantis. She encourages readers to "join in the song of earth" by getting in closer touch with the elements rather than remaining in their insulated houses. Ray's paintings magnificently enhance Hoffman's message with delicate details, intense colors (she changes her palette for each element), and her characteristic glints of gold embellishing each page. Any book tackling such an all-encompassing subject is likely to make small missteps (for instance, Native Americans are sometimes lumped together, and angels are not exclusive to Christianity), but few books for children attempt the richness of ideas and pictures found here. Susan Dove Lempke

Edition details

• Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0525454209
• ISBN 13: 9780525454205
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 80
• Illustrator: Ray Jane