So Said Ben

Children's Literature - Ken Marantz

McCurdy has chosen to spotlight, illustrate, and comment about over a dozen of the proverbs or bits of wisdom collected and promoted by Benjamin Franklin, from the familiar, "Early to bed, early to rise…," to the less known, "Speak little, do much." Each is brought to life in bold letters with McCurdy adding several illuminating sentences about Franklin and/or his times in smaller typeface at the page bottoms on a page facing the illustration. The black and white visuals have the look of the artist's engravings as they employ multiple fine lines to build up forms. There are many details depicting Franklin's times: folks tend crops, keep written records, wake from a cock's crow with a look of anguish, and read together. Varying colored borders have no special meaning but are used decoratively, as are the colored and varied typefaces. Additional notes sum up Franklin's life.

School Library Journal

Gr 1-6
Traditional American values come across loud and clear in this annotated collection of quotations by Ben Franklin, one of one of the country's most recognized and influential thinkers. Each spread presents a single quote in large pastel font centered on abundant white space. A short explanatory paragraph appears below, noting basic details of Franklin's life and his views on the world. A black-and-white woodcut reminiscent of early printing processes accompanies each quote. Though clearly illustrative of each principle, these images are sometimes marred by distorted faces and disproportioned limbs-perhaps a symptom of the medium. However, the thick matte paper and traditional type styles combine into a generally attractive work. A brief biography of Franklin is appended along with a note that references the origin of the quotes in his Poor Richard's Almanack . A useful addition to history units.
—Jayne DamronCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.