The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau (Incredible Lives for Young Readers)

"Henri Rousseau wants to be an artist. Not a single person has ever told him he is talented. He's a toll collector. He's forty years old. But he buys some canvas, paint, and brushes, and starts painting anyway." Markel's account of Rousseau's humility and amateur passion for art strikes just the right tone--it's jaunty, confiding, and affectionate. Hall's (Tales from India) acrylic and watercolor paintings celebrate Rousseau's style without parodying it or dumbing it down. She alternates between spreads of the painter at work in the wild jungles of his own imagination--flying through the air in excitement as he discovers images that inspire him--and paintings of the modest surroundings in which he lives and the dour critics who sit in judgment of him. Markel (Tyrannosaurus Math) describes Rousseau's poverty, generosity, freedom of spirit, and--finally--the recognition he achieves. It's a story about a painter who isn't driven by an enormous ego or a Promethean will but the simple love of color and form in nature--a love that Hall excels at expressing. Ages 5-9. Agent: Anna Olswanger, Liza Dawson Associates. (Aug.)

PreS-Gr 3--Drawing on the naive techniques found in the paintings of the 19th-century French toll collector, Hall depicts Rousseau's life while introducing his style and subject matter in her fanciful watercolor and acrylic scenes. Markel's well-chosen episodes begin with the purchase of his first paints and brushes-at age 40. Compact sentences convey this self-taught artist's rocky journey, leaving room for Hall's interpretation. One dynamic composition propels Rousseau, clad in black, toward readers; one eye is enlarged behind a magnifying glass as he studies and scatters colorful postcards, catalogs, and paintings from the Louvre. Humor is conveyed even when his art is being rejected by the Salon experts. As the tiny man wheels his cart of canvases up to imposing, bewhiskered figures in tuxedos, close inspection reveals that some are monkeys. An author's note highlights Rousseau's reaction to the exotic plants at the Jardin des Plantes: ."..it's as though he enters into a dream. It's like he is someone else completely." Hall's portrait accompanying that idea in the narrative is formed from greenery, flowers, and wheat-part Rousseau, part Arcimboldo. The 1889 International Exhibition also opened the artist's world; afterward, his jungle canvases came to life, and a tiger crawled into his studio. Ultimately, he was feted by luminaries identified in the illustrator's note. This is not only a visually exciting introduction to a well-known artist, but also an uplifting model of passion and perseverance. Pair it with Doris Kutschbach's Henri Rousseau's Jungle Book (Prestel, 2005) for a slightly different perspective.--Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library