Bound To Stay Bound

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Bulletin for the Center... - 06/01/2011 Napoli retraces a portion of Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery trek, cast here as a dreamy memoir of Sacagawea’s baby son Jean Baptiste, who would have experienced much of the trip from the vantage point of the cradleboard strapped to his mother’s back: “Horses twist through mountain passes, snow everywhere, food so scarce, stomachs so tight. Kraaa, kraaa! Nutcrackers call in my dreams.” Madsen’s literally rendered, romantically illuminated digital illustrations are helpful in assisting readers/listeners in picturing the snippets of baby memory-how fire was used to hollow out canoes, how goats “clip, clop” over rocky outcroppings, how Jean Baptiste peeked “through the bones of a whale.” But even these broad visual cues won’t make complete sense of the adventure for children lacking prior knowledge, who will need to rely on the scanty appended note. Listeners who prefer down-to-earth historical accounts will be impatient with the ethereal adult tone and sensibility ascribed to the pudgy-faced, button-nosed toddler, but social studies teachers may see an opportunity for a quick readaloud in a Lewis and Clark unit. EB - Copyright 2011 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

School Library Journal - 07/01/2011 Gr 1–3—On a cradleboard on his mother back, what would a baby boy be thinking as he travels across mountains, through forests, and down rivers in 1805? Napoli expertly gets into the mind of Sacagawea's son. The things that matter to him are grizzly bears, salmon, cougars, elk, and other animals; kind human hands holding him; and hearing a variety of languages. As he describes the sights, sounds, and smells of his incredible journey, he attaches a dreamlike quality to each recollection. His account seems to be fragments of memory stitched together with stories he has been told. The result is a beautiful, atmospheric narrative that explores the possibilities of that momentous expedition. Lewis and Clark are not mentioned by name in the text; his mother, Sacagawea, and his father are the important adults in the boy's eyes. Madsen's glowing illustrations, created digitally, employ rich jewel tones. The scenery and clothing have a crackled appearance that suggests an old painting, but each person's skin is vibrant and smooth, giving an impression of strength regardless of his or her circumstances. The boy grows bigger over the course of the book, implying the passage of time. Children will need nonfiction sources to gain context about Lewis and Clark, but this lyrical picture book will help them understand the journey on a human level.—Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA - Copyright 2011 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

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