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CZECH REPUBLIC & AUSTRIA
For Kids
Eyewitness Castle
• Christopher Gravett
HISTORY •
2008 •
HARD COVER
• 72 PAGES
• MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12)
Take a look behind the walls of these fascinating fortresses and learn how they were built to house hundreds of people and animals; how a young boy rose from lowly page to noble knight; and what life was like for the castle residents. With a CD of clip art and a poster.
(EUR335, $16.99) |
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Golem
• David Wisniewski
• Lee Salsberry
LITERATURE •
1996 •
HARD COVER
• 32 PAGES
• MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12)
A retelling of a Jewish legend, set in Prague in the 16th century, a dark time for the city's Jewish residents. A rabbi builds a clay giant to protect his people from persecution; the golem, in this version, speaks with a child's simplicity. The remarkable paper-cutout illustrations brilliantly evoke the Prague of old, and the author includes a helpful historical note. It's suitable for 7 to 10 year-olds. A Caldecott Medal book.
(CZH38, $17.00) |
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Marie Antoinette, Princess of Versailles (Austria-Hungary, 1769)
• Kathryn Lasky
LITERATURE •
2000 •
HARD COVER
• 238 PAGES
• MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12)
The ill-fated future queen of France records life at the Habsburg palace in Austria in this novel-in-diary-format, written by the reliably excellent children's author Kathryn Lasky. The teenaged Marie is almost of marrying age, and the future is full of possibility. An entry in Scholastic's "Princess Diaries" series, for ages 9 to 12. The book is designed to feel like a real princess's diary, with gold-embossed pages and a sturdy binding.
(FRN342, $10.99) |
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The Star of Kazan
• Eva Ibbotson
• Kevin Hawkes
LITERATURE •
2006 •
PAPER
• 404 PAGES
• YOUNG ADULTS
A delightful young adult adventure that twists and turns through fin-de-siecle Vienna. Annika, a foundling taken in by a household of eccentric professors and kind hearted servants, is enchanted by the spectacle of Vienna and the simple pleasures of domestic chores. Her life is turned upside-down when her aristocratic mother unexpectedly reappears in her life and sweeps her off to live in a castle in Germany. Ibbotson, a favorite writer for children, spent her early years in Vienna.
(CEU24, $8.99) |
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The Three Golden Keys
• Peter Sis
LITERATURE •
2001 •
HARD COVER
• 64 PAGES
• FAMILY
Either by magic or trick of memory, author/illustrator Peter Sis is transported to the Prague of his childhood. As in all of Sis's books, the imaginary gets mixed up with the real -- in this book, he meets characters from Czech folklore, including the Golem and Hanus the Clockmaker. Prague, so often called a "fairy tale city," is at its most fairy tale-ish in this sophisticated, entrancing picture book. Intended for grade-school children, the book will appeal equally (or more) to parents.
(CZH39, $24.99) |
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The Wall, Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain
• Peter Sis
BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •
2007 •
HARD COVER
• 56 PAGES
• FAMILY
With his usual flair and attention to detail, illustrator Peter Sis reveals life as a youth in Prague in the 1960s and 1970s, deftly sketching the events, experiences and history of an era. Effectively alternating color and media (Prague Spring of 1968 erupts to psychedelic color, Stalin's tanks are darkly foreboding), the page margins are dense with childhood art, photographs, and advertising and propaganda from the time, lending documentary weight to a poignant, personal tribute to the creative spirit -- and the longing for freedom.
(CZH78, $18.99) |
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