Simple Gifts: A Shaker Hymn - Hardcover

Raschka, Chris

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0805051430 ISBN 13: 9780805051438

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), 1998

Synopsis

Simple Gifts is one of the very few hymns that all Americans treasure. In churches, at graduation and wedding ceremonies, on concert and ballet stages, and especially in homes and schools, it is a perennial favorite.

Now the acclaimed and ever-innovative artist Chris Raschka has transformed this treasured Shaker hymn into a lavish picture book.

In Raschka's hands an irresistible cat, the bluebird of happiness, a sweet rabbit, a calm turtle, and the flowers that bloom, bend, and bow, all "Come 'round right."

About this title

About the Author

Chris Raschka won a Caldecott Honor for Yo! Yes?, and is also the illustrator of The Genie in the Jar by Nikki Giovanni. He lives with his wife and son in New York City.

Reviews

PreSchool-Grade 3?Raschka slides easily from a visual interpretation of jazz rhythms (Charlie Parker Played Be-Bop [1992], Mysterious Thelonious [1997, both Orchard]) to the soulful strains of a Shaker hymn. He notes inspiration culled from a late painting by Paul Klee. This stylistic choice is surprising and yet perfectly suited to the text. As the pages turn, bold black lines define, in succession, a cat, blue jay, squirrel, turtle, and rabbit in motion against a background of dynamic, geometric shapes that suggest leaves and sunlight. The texture of the pastel paper shows through the oil crayon outlines and sweeps of interior color, adding energy and interest to the design. Most impressive, however, is the way Raschka choreographs the animals through the narrative. An author's note (printed above the melody) explains that the song was originally sung quite rapidly while Shaker men and women danced in circular patterns. Raschka portrays a playful, geometrically jumbled, hide-and-seek scene for the verse, "And when we find ourselves in the place just right"; then the animals are shown cuddling sweetly in a calmer close-up, "'Twill be in the valley of love and delight." He builds a joyous finale of flora and fauna swirling over several pages?"To turn, turn will be our delight." The hand-lettered, black cursive text against a band of gold or tan provides a fluid, childlike accompaniment that matches the mood and palette of the images to a tee. Simply lovely.?Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Raschka (Mysterious Thelonius), one of the reigning risk-takers of the picture book world, undertakes yet another challenge in this interpretation of a traditional Shaker song, albeit less successfully. Using oil crayon on pastel paper, he creates an exceedingly handsome stained glass effect, with heavy black lines juxtaposed against hues as warm as a flurry of autumn leaves. As always, Raschka's vision is unique, and here he translates the Shaker musical paean to a simplified life into a sort of peaceable kingdom, where a cat, blue jay, rabbit, squirrel and turtle dwell together in harmony with nature. The artwork is undeniably glorious, but, as appealing as this serene, spiritual vision is, readers may miss the joy implicit in this Shaker song that is meant for dancing. Adults will likely find themselves drawn to search closely for visual metaphor and meaning, and to reflect on the rather sophisticated ideas in the lyrics ("When true simplicity is gained,/ To bow and to bend/ we shan't be asham'd/ To turn, turn/ will be our delight/ Till by turning, turning/ we come 'round right"). But aside from the pleasing look of the paintings, youngsters may be left a bit at sea. Ages 4-8. (Mar.) FYI: The music to "Simple Gifts" is included, along with a brief afterword describing the Shaker community.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Raschka continues his exploration of visualized music, in this case the 150-year-old Shaker hymn of the title. This book may not be as esoteric nor contrapuntal as Mysterious Thelonious (1997), but it is just as gorgeously illustrated. Raschka deploys an elegant palette of blue, yellow, brown, green, and red to fashion close-up, boldly outlined images of creatures--cat, rabbit, bird, turtle, etc.--sharing a landscape tangled with flowers and grasses. It's not too far off the mark to imagine that the great slabs of oil-crayon colors suggest the whirling circle dances of the Shakers, particularly when the hymn is placed in its historical context; there is abundant energy in the artwork, with its undeniable sense of warmth and community. Every spread has a band of color in which Raschka has hand-lettered the words of the song, which is also included with musical notations in an author's note. (Picture book. 5-9) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Ages 4^-8. A traditional Shaker hymn receives a new interpretation by Raschka, who previously demonstrated his own gift for simplicity in Yo? Yes!, a 1994 Caldecott Honor Book. Here he turns to what, at first, may seem an unlikely source of artistic inspiration for a quintessentially American poem: the later work of Swiss artist Paul Klee. Nevertheless, like the hymn, Raschka's book turns out right. Working in oil crayon and using the colors of a warm autumn afternoon, he creates a dynamic yet harmonious interaction of representational and abstract forms that fill but never crowd double-page spreads. One by one, a cat, a bluebird, a squirrel, a turtle, and a rabbit enter a forest made up of swirling shapes that evoke the Shakers' passion for "turning," that is, dancing in circles. Meanwhile, Raschka's hand-lettered, cursive text reinforces the sense of movement by freeing the words from the rigid confines of type. As the hymn proceeds to its second stanza, the animals retreat, and flowers, plants, and leaves demonstrate the state "when true simplicity is gained." As the words return to "turn, turn," the animals reappear, though this time we see only parts of their bodies merging with the dance of abstraction begun by the flora. On the last double-page spread, the animals are again full-bodied, as they "come 'round right." And in their harmonious coming together, Raschka reinvokes a peaceable kingdom, an idea already introduced in his first-stanza image of the animals sleeping peacefully together in "the valley of love and delight." This is not only a brilliantly original interpretation of traditional material but also--in its harmony of image and text and its dynamic movement from page to page--an unforgettable picture book that adults will appreciate as much as children. Michael Cart

Edition details

• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0805051430
• ISBN 13: 9780805051438
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Raschka Chris
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32