The Man Who Painted Indians: George Catlin

School Library Journal

Gr 3-6-Catlin was born in 1796, and grew up as the new nation was itself growing and expanding. Always fascinated by the American wilderness and the native peoples who inhabited it, he left a law career to become a painter and eventually dedicated his life to traveling and recording images of the land and its people. The artist's life and work are accurately described in this brief but thorough biography. Plain often details what Catlin thought, wondered, and felt, along with what he did, occasionally quoting from what readers can only assume are his writings; there are no notes or sources for quotes or illustrations. A fairly extensive list for further reading suggests many sources about Native Americans, but none about the artist. Well-chosen, full-color reproductions of paintings are carefully placed so that they truly illustrate the text, but no titles or museum collection details are given to help readers who wish to find out more. Mark Sufrin's George Catlin (Atheneum, 1991) expands upon many of the same incidents described by Plain and includes a bibliography of nine works about him and sources for the paintings depicted, but is illustrated with only black-and-white reproductions. The two books complement one another, and should both be available to students.-Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, PA