Cool Book: ​The Iridescence of Birds: A Book About Henri Matisse by Patricia MacLachlan

​The Iridescence of Birds: A Book About Henri Matisse
Patricia MacLachlan
Illustrations by Hadley Hooper
 
Here’s a lovely gift for budding young artists. Little Henri Matisse lives in a grey town in northern France. But he becomes aware of color as he notices his mother’s brightly painted plates and the red rugs on their walls and floors. He visits local silk weavers as they create textiles blossoming with many-colored patterns. Henri mixes paint for his mother; his father gives him pigeons--Henri loves their red feet and their colored feathers changing in the light. (Kids will be amused when he imagines himself as a grown-up painter.) Hooper’s adorable little Henri and the gorgeous reds, blues, and oranges of her vibrant relief prints will surely appeal to other young artists. MacLachlan, speaking directly to readers, asks if you had seen all this, “would it be a surprise that you became a fine painter who painted light and movement and the iridescence of birds?” Author and artist add notes for fascinated adults. 

2014, Ages 3 to 7

Check it out from your library using the library catalog. Donate to an improved Sebastopol Regional Library here.

Recommended by: Barbara Talcroft
Barbara Talcroft reviews children’s books professionally for childrenslit.com and for Children’s Literature Comprehensive Database.  She has a Master’s degree in International Children’s Literature.  She also has many years’ experience as a teacher.  Barbara is one of the founders of LANTERN and its past chairperson.

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