  | Full Text Reviews: Booklist - 07/01/2017 *Starred Review* Mary Blair loves colors. As she travels through deserts, cities, and foreign countries, she meets new, vivid hues, and collects them for her drawings. Working at Walt Disney Studios, she’s eager to let her pigments run free and play. But the rule-following men reject Mary’s innovative ideas—like emerald-green skies or teal pumpkin coaches—so she quits. Missing Mary and her extraordinary colors, Walt Disney asks Mary to design a vibrant ride about cultures around the world. Mary agrees, but with one condition: she gets to be the boss. Barrager’s digital artwork imitates the clean lines, flat shapes, and bright colors of Blair’s stunning concept art for the It’s a Small World ride. Bulletin boards and square pieces of paper cannot contain the excitement of her drawings; sunshine radiates past corners, and mermaids swim off the page, while rainbow wisps stream from Mary’s paintbrush and trail after her fingers. In contrast, her close-minded male colleagues wear neutral suits and study black-and-white sketches. Even Walt wears brown in front of plain, plaid wallpaper, while swirls of magenta, lemon, and olive envelope Mary. The whimsical illustrations will enamor young readers, while older kids will learn about a Disney legend as well as new words, such as russet or viridian. An independent, enthusiastic role model, Mary will teach young readers how to value what makes them special and advocate for their talents. - Copyright 2017 Booklist. School Library Journal - 07/01/2017 K-Gr 4—This picture book biography of Mary Blair reveals a woman who thought outside the box and beyond the "rules" of art. Digitally rendered illustrations assist in telling the story of the artist who followed her own vision and relished playing with color. The pictures show paint swirling off the artwork Blair created, emphasizing her desire to be free to do what came naturally. A variety of hues with which readers may not be familiar are introduced, such as sienna, azure, viridian, cerulean, and mauve. Blair accepted a position with Walt Disney Studios during the Depression, assuming the company would welcome her artistic flair. The scene of her first day at work depicts her dressed in teal and pink while the other illustrators, all men, wear black, brown, gray, and white—foretelling the resistance to individuality she encountered. Blair soon resigned from that position and found satisfaction in illustrating books and advertisements, but years later Walt Disney himself hired her back. He appreciated her unconventional use of color and wanted it for the "It's a Small World" ride he designed for the 1964 World's Fair. The ending spread pays homage to that very ride, showing a slew of kids, dressed in cultural costumes, holding hands; however, this depiction reinforces many stereotypes and will likely need to be followed by a discussion. VERDICT Budding artists will enjoy learning about Blair and her persistence in obeying her instincts and creating art that pleased her.—Maryann H. Owen, Oak Creek Public Library, WI - Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Loading...
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