[Nonfiction Wednesday] Opening The Portals To Fantasia Through A Painter’s Eyes

Myra here.

We are delighted to join the Nonfiction Picture Book meme 2020 hosted by Alyson Beecher @ Kid Lit Frenzy. We would also be linking our nonfiction choices with our reading themes throughout the year, when we can.

One of the ways through which fantasia can be reached is through the portals of a painter’s mind: his vivid colours, brushes, and distinct way of perceiving the world.

Through The Window: Views Of Marc Chagall’s Life And Art (Amazon | Book Depository)

Written by Barb Rosenstock Illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Published by Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers (2018)
ISBN: 1524717517 (ISBN13: 9781524717513)
Borrowed via Singapore’s NLB Overdrive. E-Book photos taken by me.

I was a fan of Barb Rosenstock and Mary Grandpre’s collaboration on The Noisy Paint Box. When I discovered that they have another picturebook biography of another European artist, I looked for it on Overdrive and was thrilled to find it.

The story begins with Chagall’s childhood in Vitebsk, Belarus – then part of the Russian empire. While everyone else were convinced that they would make a living being a butcher, baker, blacksmith, Chagall had stars in his eyes as he stared out the window, imagining fantastical worlds, mosaics of colours, and “fragments of folktales.”

Chagall’s entire lifestory was painted into this exquisite book: from escaping religious persecution to the refinement of his vision in his later years.

Rosenstock has a way of distilling information and facts and transforming them into something magical, lyrical, and exquisite. Grandpre’s art illuminates the narrative with such solid form and sure strokes that pay homage to Chagall’s famous art. Teachers and parents would also be happy to note that the back story contains even more information about Chagall’s life and a list of References for those who wish to know more about this quiet man’s life. A picturebook biography that you should definitely add to your collection.

Please do check out Fats’ review of this picturebook as well here.