In The Face of Presumptions by the acclaimed american artist and illustrator Barry Moser presents one of those rare instances whereby a highly and widely regarded artist shares the inner thoughts and awareness that in turn, inspire visual and literary concepts. Each chapter reveals the necessary acumen and grit of daily living transformed into meaningful and fully accesible paragraphs of language, which in turn engage the reader allowing us to see the bigger picture through the eyes of an artist.
In an age of self-vaunted and pretentious autobiographies and personnal essays Mr. Moser's writing is a uniquely refreshing departure that is immenently cogent, down-to-earth, humoress at times, and sprinkled with wit that has endeared him to readers, and collectors of art and fine press books from his Pennyroyal Press imprints such as the Alice books, Frankenstein, The Wizard of Oz and his most recent magnum opus The Pennyroyal /Caxton Bible complete with over two hundred engraved prints illustrate painted speech at its best.
The array of subjects and incidents discussed by the author in his book have touches of Goethe, old Huck himself, and James Thurber with an emphasis on life's daily affairs and an honest sharing of the creative output of others whom have provided sources of inspiration and introspection in his work,
The publisher, David Godine, has again given us a fine publication for everyman.

A rollicking retelling of the classic Brer Rabbit stories. In this adaptation of the Joel Chandler Harris stories, children and their lucky parents can watch the wily Brer Rabbit outsmart time and time again his predatory neighbors and prove that brains really are better than brawn. The difficult dialect of the Chandler Harris originals has been updated and simplified for modern readers, and these beautiful volumes (there are three books in the series) are brilliantly illustrated by award-winning artist Barry Moser. This book is a must-have; I can't imagine why it isn't a best-seller.

This is a very charming book. Not only is there Chekhov's fine story about a lost dog getting involved in a circus act, but the illustrations are wonderful. Surely this is the way 19th Century St. Petersburg looked!

My daughter first found this book in the library when she was six, and it quickly became one of her favorites.

I first heard and fell in love with this poem as a song. Joan Baez put Henry Treece's poem to music on her 1968 albumn: "Baptism: A Journey Through Our Time" and also found on her 1974 compilation albumn "The Comtemporary Ballad Book".

So when I found the poem as a book with beautiful threatening illustrations, I found it irrisistible. I go back to that book from time to time and sing it again, especially around Halloween.

I'm ordering this book after checking it out of the library 4 times. It is my daughter's favorite book, and it's so beautiful I don't mind reading it over and over (at least not as much as other books).

It's a very simple narrative, but I have seen my daughter play with our cats in the same ways Isabelle and Emmie play with Nick and Nora--I think that must be some of the appeal. The illustrations are simply beautiful--they capture the mood of both girls and cats, and the use of light is sublime.

Good reading skills are recommended for this lush title which blends botany and memories of plants and people. A variety of gardens are profiled, adventures in them are detailed, and young gardeners receive inspirational insights on gardens and beauty. A lovely picturebook.

This is the story of Artaban, a seeker of Truth. He is the other wiseman who sought the 'great king'foretold in ancient script and heralded by the 'star'. On his way to meet the three wisemen, he is delayed. This sets him on a quest ins search of the King. It will lead him to many places and experiences. This book with its beautiful word pictures reminds us once again the importance of seeking Truth wherever we find it. It adds new meaning to the story of Christmas.

Grab a box of Kleenex before reading this little book because it will tug at your heart. This book makes a great gift for a Little League coach, team mom, or player. Truly a sweet book!

For those who are unaware, Purgatorio is the second part of Dante's Divine Comedy. After reading the Inferno, this book continues Dante's journey. Similar to the Inferno, Dante is accompanied by his guide, the great poet, Virgil. Also similar to the inferno, the two have to travel through different levels of this part of the afterlife and once again encounter the ironic tourtures faces by sinners. This book also comes with a map which can help a reader follow the path folled by the two men. Very helpful. It would be a good idea to first read The Inferno, in order to fully understand what is happening. Overall, the book is very deep, but fortunately this version comes with a terrific collection of notes which can be used to better understand the passages written in foriegn languages, and also helps us to understand the many characters discovered in this journey. A must for almost any reader. I hope this was helpful, but if it wasn't, I appologize for the time you wasted reading it. Purgatorio won't be such a waste. Enjoy.

If you're lucky enough to run across this book, you'll be very happy to have it in your collection of children's books. The predominantly-dark but gorgeous illustrations are entirely in keeping with the sombre tone of the story as Margaret Hodges beautifully retells the legend of St. Jerome:

A wounded lion finds his way to the Bethehem monastery, and among the monks there only quiet, gentle Jerome is unafraid. He helps the lion and befriends him, defending his seeming unfitness for living in the monastery, telling the monks, "God must have sent the lion for our good." Falsely accused of killing the donkey under his guard, the lion is put to work performing the donkey's chores. After a year, the lion finds the donkey and brings her home to the monastery--along with the caravan of camels belonging to the merchants who had stolen the donkey. The merchants give half of their inventory of Egyptian oil to the brothers at the monastery and promise a gift of oil for the monks' lamps for posterity.

The book carries a strong message that one should reserve judgment against the accused until proof is found. It's a wonderful book and easy to read--simply written with basic vocabulary. Barry Moser's illustrations are so lovely: detailed yet lacking excessive visual distractions, and photographic in quality--watercolor pictures painted by a real artist, definitely not the cartoon-illustrations all too typical of children's books today.

St. Jerome is the monk who two thousand years ago translated the Bible into Latin, making the biblical scriptures accessible for most of the world's literate people of the time. The book is dedicated, in part, "to librarians, because Jerome is their patron saint."