Nonfiction Review #3

Book Review For:

 

Kerly, Barbara. 2008. WHAT TO DO ABOUT ALICE?: HOW ALICE ROOSEVELT BROKE THE RULES, CHARMED THE WORLD, AND DROVE HER FATHER TEDDY CRAZY! 1st ed. New York: Scholastic Press. ISBN 9780439922319

            Brimming with colorful collages filled with movement, WHAT TO DO ABOUT ALICE is a visual feast depicting Teddy Roosevelt’s daughter’s energy and enthusiasm for life. Every now and then throughout the story, Barbara Kerly interjects bold font with a slight flourish to emphasize quotes like “eating up the world” and “best official behavior”, and the text is arranged in a different format and position on every page. These pictures and varied text, combined with little tidbits of Alice’s life and adventures (like when she jumped into a swimming pool fully clothed), are sure to peak a young reader’s interest. The added space between lines makes reading easier on the eyes, too.

            An author’s note and listed references are included on the very last page and inside of the back cover in this particular edition, which lends credibility to the facts throughout the picture book biography.

            After reading this story with children, an educator could follow up with a study of famous, historic, eccentric individuals like Albert Einstein. Students could also learn quirky facts about past presidents. A discussion about how unique individuals may not have fit into society perfectly but still made great contributions to the world could additionally be initiated.

 

This book has won many awards, including the following:

·         Sibert Honor Book

·         Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book

·         Irma Black Award Honor Book

·         Parents Choice Award

·         A PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Best Book of the Year

·         A SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL Best Book of the Year

·         A KIRKUS REVIEWS Best Book of the Year

·         An ALA Notable Book (“Children's Book Author Barbara Kerly”, n.d.)

 

This book has also received the following glowing reviews:

"Irrepressible Alice Roosevelt gets a treatment every bit as attractive and exuberant as she was....  Kerley's text has the same rambunctious spirit as its subject, grabbing readers from the first line....  The large format gives Fotheringham, in his debut, plenty of room for spectacular art."                                                                          

         Booklist, starred review (“Children's Book Author Barbara Kerly”, n.d.)

"Kerley's text gallops along with a vitality to match her subject's antics, as the girl greets White House visitors accompanied by her pet snake, refuses to let leg braces cramp  her style, dives fully clothed into a ship's swimming pool, and also earns her place in history as one of her father's trusted advisers.... Fascinating."
                                                                

      School Library Review, starred review (“Children's Book Author Barbara Kerly”, n.d.)

 

References

"Children's Book Author Barbara Kerly." Children's Book Author Barbara Kerly., accessed October 30, 2013, http://www.barbarakerley.com/Alice.html.