The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer's Bright Ideas and Brand-New ColorsIllustrated by Tony Persiani
Charlesbridge, 2009
40 pgs.
$18.95
Rating: 4.5
For: School age kids, a perfect first biography or nonfiction for reluctant nonfiction readers.
Note: The Day-Glo colors on the actual cover really "glow", much more than they appear to on this picture.....
As I read this book, I was totally thinking like a teacher - this would definitely be a great model for biography writing. It tells the story of how two brothers went from wanting to be a doctor and a magician/performer to becoming the inventors of day-glo colors and paint. Born in 1914 and 1915, their invention particularly impacted World War II. Though full of details (theirs is a fascinating story), it's not so overly detailed that it becomes dry and/or uninteresting. So many people are not nonfiction readers. This is a great way to read nonfiction.
The illustrations are quite uniqes. Cartoon-like, they begin in grayscale with light shades of orange, yellow, green here and there. As the brothers begin experimenting with fluorescence, the colors become deeper and deeper, although grays still predominate - until the last page has a black background. I really like the overall look and concept of the book.
At the end I was not disappo9inted with the afterwords. "How Does Regular Fluorenscence Work? "How Does Daylight Fluorescence Work?" and a great two-page "Author's Note" gave me the satisfaction I needed. I think I'm going to compile a list of books with great author's notes. I'm such a list person!
A picture book packed with facts and interesting to read. What more could you want in nonfiction? Perfect for me!
Read the original New York Times obituary that started author Chris Barton's interest and research here.
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