Summary: A celebration of diverse world cultures from the brilliant Peter Spier, one of the most beloved children’s illustrators of the last fifty years. In this breathtaking tour around the world, young readers can pore over the many details that make each country and culture unique and special—illuminated by Spier’s detailed and witty illustrations of festivals and holidays, foods, religions, homes, pets, and clothing. In print since 1980, this classic, boundary-pushing book is a must-have in today’s global age—a tribute to the ways in which we as the world’s citizens are at once both different and the same. (Summary from - Image from amazon.com)
My Review: People
is remarkable children’s book and the winner of the 1980 Christopher Medal, an
award given to books and other forms of media that affirm the highest values of
the human spirit. And you know what? It does exactly that.
People is simply
drawn, but visually stunning with plenty of color and detail to interest even the
most grown-up eye. In a few short, but
engaging pages, it manages to both highlight and celebrate the varied cultures
of the world and the differences (and similarities) among all people. Without straight up plagiarizing the book, I’d
like to give you a sense of what to expect so I’m going to summarize the book
in my own words:
Basically, each person born on the earth is unique. We may have all started as babies but we come
in all sizes, shapes, and colors. We live
in different places, in a variety of homes, with different clothing, food, languages,
hairstyles, religions, jobs, and ways we like to spend our time. Most pages focus on one or two specific ways
in which we might be different and provides drawings to illustrate those differences. For example, there are pages dedicated to drawings
of different types homes, styles of dress, written languages, physical
characteristics, food, pets, jobs, and games from around the world.
All of the above is certainly true and thoroughly engaging, but
the most important part comes towards the end, where the author reminds the reader that what
seems normal to us might seem strange to someone else. Or what seems ugly to
us, might be beautiful to someone else. He
stresses (without being preachy) that we don’t need to be afraid of one another
or hate someone because they don’t look the way we do, believe the things we
do, or behave the way we think they should.
In his words, a world without differences would be “dreadfully dull.” Our differences don’t have to define or separate
us; in fact, they what makes this world and its people so very beautiful.
My Rating: 5 unique & beautiful stars
My Rating: 5 unique & beautiful stars
For the sensitive
reader: There is a small drawing of two naked people from behind. It's a safe assumption that they are Adam and Eve but I didn't feel this book was particularly inclined towards any particular faith. One line of the book talks about how ultimately everyone dies and is accompanied by the illustration of an open grave, shovel, and headstone. A
little morbid, but I didn’t find it offensive.
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