Fiction - General & Miscellaneous, Counting, Colors

One Some Many

Name: One Some Many
Author: Tom Slaughter
ISBN: 9780887767890

by Tom Slaughter

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Overview

One Some Many by Marthe Jocelyn and Tom Slaughter is an excellent early introduction to numbers and to the principles of modern art. It is the perfect companion to 1 2 3, a counting book with a difference. Slaughter’s bold, Matisse-inspired paper cuts illustrate basic artistic elements, including color, form, and line, while the playful and inventive text introduces the concepts of quantity that children find most puzzling (and that adults have the most difficulty explaining!). After all, how many is many? Some? A few?

Synopsis

Publishers Weekly

Three concept books with art by Tom Slaughter seem ideally suited to board book editions: 1 2 3; One Some Many and Over Under, the latter two with text by Marthe Jocelyn. PW wrote of the original books, "This trio of books makes learning the basics fun, while also celebrating modern art." Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

About the Author, Tom Slaughter

Marthe Jocelyn is an award-winning author and illustrator who worked for many years as a toy designer before turning her hand to writing. She has written six novels, including the critically acclaimed works of historical fiction, Mable Riley and Earthly Astonishments. Jocelyn has also written a nonfiction account of the Foundling Hospital in London, England, entitled, A Home for Foundlings. She has created eight picture books, one of which, Hannah’s Collections, was shortlisted for a Governor General’s Literary Award for Illustration. Jocelyn has also edited two collections of short stories. Marthe Jocelyn divides her time between New York and Stratford, Ontario.

From the Hardcover edition.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

Children's Literature

As clean and appealing graphic art, this book succeeds. But as a concept book of what constitutes a few, many, or the numbers one through ten, it is on less sure ground. A single bright yellow pear representing "one" is seen with others to represent "three" and a tree dotted with eight pear-shapes illustrates "many" while a half-eaten pear on the next page illustrates "hardly any." So far, so good. But a few daisies becomes "more than two" and the numbers three through seven are fuddled before straightforward pages of eight beach balls and nine pencils resume counting. A building with ten windows is shown while text asks "is ten some?" or "is ten many?" A black page with a window through which is seen a white moon against a blue sky states "one is only one." Well, perhaps context is all for the slithery "few, some, and many" while counting one to ten is on more solid ground. If you are looking to explore clean, saturated color with stylized shapes (bees, sails, pears, beach balls), here's one example. But, if you are looking for clarity in a counting book or a concept book, try Tana Hoban's brilliant, focused, and well-conceived, explorations in full-color photographs. 2004, Tundra Books, Ages 3 to 6.
—Susan Hepler, Ph.D.

Children's Literature - Susan Hepler

As clean and appealing graphic art, this board book succeeds. But as a concept book of what constitutes a few, many, or the numbers one through ten, it is on less sure ground. A single bright yellow pear representing "one" is seen with others to represent "three" and a tree dotted with eight pear-shapes illustrates "many" while a half-eaten pear on the next page illustrates "hardly any." So far, so good. But a few daisies becomes "more than two" and the numbers three through seven are fuddled before straightforward pages of eight beach balls and nine pencils resume counting. A building with ten windows is shown while text asks "is ten some?" or "is ten many?" A black page with a window through which is seen a white moon against a blue sky states "one is only one." Well, perhaps context is all for the slithery "few, some, and many" while counting one to ten is on more solid ground. If you are looking to explore clean, saturated color with stylized shapes (bees, sails, pears, beach balls), here's one example. But, if you are looking for clarity in a counting book or a concept book, try Tana Hoban's brilliant, focused, and well-conceived, explorations in full-color photographs.

School Library Journal

PreS-K-This counting book presents the concepts of "some," "many," "few," and "more" through a rhyming text and stunning, boldly colored paper cuts. A listing of the numbers from 1 to 10 is interrupted by phrases such as "two/a few/a few is more than two/a few is three/or four." Slaughter has recycled some of the images he created for 1 2 3 (Tundra, 2003), and the pictures here are once again deceptively simple yet elegant. However, this effort has a more playful mood as the artist visually explains the ideas expressed in the text. For example, on consecutive pages, "one" is depicted as a single pear, "some" by a group of three pears, "many" by a pear tree full of fruit, and "hardly any" by the remains of an eaten pear. (Older students may want to study this title to learn some of the tenets of basic design technique.) A unique concept book that will appeal to young children.-Rachel G. Payne, Brooklyn Public Library, NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

A combination concept and counting book, this would work better if it were one or the other. The concepts of "some," "many," and "a few" are introduced to young readers but without the repetition that would make them truly stick in the minds of children. One pear stands alone, three pears are some, while a tree full of pears represents many. A "few" is presented as being more than two-it might be three, four, or more. From this point, the text diverges into a counting book. Once reaching ten, the story asks the never-answered questions, "is ten some? / is ten many?" Slaughter's bright, bold paper cuts are reminiscent of Matisse and are a good bridge to the world of modern art. Too bad it tries to be so many things. (Picture book. 2-5)