Creature Comforts: People and Their Security Objects - Hardcover

Barbara Collopy O'Halloran

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0618118640 ISBN 13: 9780618118649

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers, 2002

Synopsis

Almost everyone has a favorite doll, an aging teddy, or an unraveling blankie—either safely put away in a drawer or still lovingly tucked into bed at night. Adults and children alike treasure these creature comforts because they offer security, lifelong friendship, and the smell of home.
Through striking black-and-white photographs and first-person accounts, Barbara Collopy O’Halloran and Betty Udesen tenderly document and reveal just some of the extraordinary magic found beneath the worn exteriors of a misshapen sweater, a winking dog, and even an earless rabbit named “Chickey.”

About this title

About the Author

Barbara Collopy O'Halloran lives in Seattle, Washington. She is a mom, a writer, and a producer of film and video programs.

Betty Udesen, a photojournalist for twenty-five years, has been with the Seattle Times for eighteen years. Her photography has received much national and international recognition and won numerous awards.

Reviews

Gr 3 Up-This title documents the relationships of people and their cherished security objects, ranging from a number of shredded blankies and threadbare doggies to an earless rabbit named "Chickey" that still travels with a rock singer. Some of these first-person accounts are supplied by adults, others by children and their mothers. A sweet humanity and, well, comfort comes across in the striking black-and-white photos that accompany the comments. The text is generally spare and warm, conveying fragile vulnerability and common need. Children and adults alike will enjoy perusing this kindly and candid book.
Joyce Adams Burner, Hillcrest Library, Prairie Village, KS
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

"Winky," "Gorilla" and "Blanky and the Nippi Strips" are not the names of campy grunge bands. They are the stuffed animals and well-worn blankets in Creature Comforts: People and Their Security Objects by Barbara Collopy O'Halloran, photos by Betty Udesen. Personal accounts of special items that have accompanied children through various rites of passage, often from both a parent's and child's perspective, are accompanied by b&w photos.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 6-up. Here's an unusual idea: a collection of black-and-white photographs of people with cherished objects--fragments of blankets, dolls, stuffed animals worn to near-nothingness. The children and adults pictured talk about their objects in remarkably similar ways: how they love the scent of their blankie or stuffie, how it comforts them, how their posession, sometimes little more than a tangle of threads, means security and love. Some of these folks are children, others are adults; the youngest is about 18 months old, and the oldest is 94. Sometimes the children's commentary is augmented by the voice of a mom or dad. People are identified by their first names and their ages, and each object's name is given. The photographs are almost surreal in their intensity, and there are several pictures of adults that kids may find disturbing. It's hard to say if children will take to this--the best audience may be adults--but they will certainly recognize the emotions so nakedly expressed. GraceAnne DeCandido
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0618118640
• ISBN 13: 9780618118649
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 64