Leonardo da Vinci

School Library Journal

Gr 4-7-- The shortcomings of these biographies become apparent as readers come to the last section. There, where excerpts from primary sources are the focus, Magellan, Schweitzer, and Da Vinci come alive. The bulk of what has come before, however, depends more on dramatization and dialogue, with abrupt transitions between chapters and sketchy or incomplete information. The Leopard Society in Lambarene, for example, is mentioned without explanation, and Da Vinci begins with an awkward flashback. Even the journal and autobiographical excerpts are not without problems. Schweitzer's views on colonialism are introduced with the comment: ``Remember that these are the words of a man writing early in the twentieth century.'' What will that mean to young readers? Flat, textbook-like pictures fill the pages. In Da Vinci, they are a poor substitute for the artist's own work. The few postage-stamp size illustrations and reproductions that correspond to a chronology of historical and cultural events are haphazard and at times look like irrelevant afterthoughts. One photo and caption appear twice in Schweitzer. The term ``greedy savages'' appears in Magellan ; its absence of maps is inexcusable in a work for this age level. --Susan Schuller, Milwaukee Public Library