Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 08/01/2018 Artist Thomas Cole left England as a young man. The Industrial Revolution had taken his family’s jobs and was destroying the bucolic countryside he loved. Though he had a tough time making a living here as well, he remained devoted to his paintings, and when he visited the Catskills in upstate New York, he found a subject he wanted to paint for the rest of his life: the unspoiled beauty of the American landscape. Talbott, who wrote about the same area in River of Dreams? (2009), does a fine job of capturing an artist’s life, while at the same time offering a history lesson on the natural beauty of the country, as well as an early push to protect the environment. Cole, instrumental in the formation of the Hudson River School, is shown here in light-hearted illustrations and in dramatic full-page paintings. Reproductions of his works appear on several pages, but size constraints make it difficult to fully grasp their power. However, aided by the back matter, many intrigued readers will happily search out more. - Copyright 2018 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 08/01/2018 Gr 2–4—Few artists have been able to capture the magic and timeless beauty of the U.S. landscape better than Thomas Cole. He loved to draw from a young age, and when his family settled in Pennsylvania from England, Cole continued to sharpen his artistic skills. Life was a struggle for the family, but he nevertheless pursued his dream of becoming an artist, eventually traveling to New York City to integrate himself into the bustling arts community there. But he longed for the rolling hills of England, so he made his way up through the Hudson River Valley, and history was made: Cole was so captivated by the beauty and majesty of the Catskills landscape that it became the subject of his work and made him the founder of the Hudson River School art movement. As industrialization continued, Cole's art inspired viewers to appreciate and conserve our country's natural lands. The book offers excellent reproductions of Cole's work: text, illustrations, and reproductions combine to trace the evolution of Cole's art and the progression of the Hudson River Movement, including its implications for modern art. VERDICT Readers will fall in love with landscape in this captivating, inspiring picture book. A fine addition to art history collections.—Natalie Romano, Denver Public Library - Copyright 2018 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.