Map | Help | Home
Reviews & Acclaim:

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7–In a series of remarkably candid poems, Anne Marie tells the story of her family's transition from disarray and grief to hope. In Family Portrait, she digs out an old family photograph and angrily cut[s] Dad out/with five quick snips/crumple[s] his face/like an empty gum wrapper,/which is just what he deserves/for leaving/˜my four girls'/two years ago today. The young narrator's poems reflect on her neighborhood, family, and friends, often from the security of her spy tree. There, she and her twin sister share a branch and sometimes different perspectives, particularly about their new stepfather: ˜Maybe/you could take/a chance on Mike, too./He wasn't the one/who ditched us,/you know.' The writing is lyrical yet fresh, as in this description of the cat lady who feeds cats out of her spotted hands,/a quilt of cats/folded around her legs. Glass's remarkable watercolors, sketches, photographs, and collages bring Anne Marie's experiences to life. With each turn of the page, readers encounter delightfully energized illustrations that complement the subject and mood of each poem well. Similar in tone and subject to Vera B. Williams's Amber Was Brave, Essie Was Smart (Greenwillow, 2001), this book would be a valuable addition to most collections.–Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Gr. 3-5. In a series of poems, Anne Marie sketches out her neighborhood, her family, and her story. An identical twin, she endures the usual comments and commonplace disadvantages of being a double, but she also recognizes the rewards of having a "built-in / born-in / look-alike / best friend." Together yet separate, the girls navigate their father's leaving, their mother's remarriage, and the addition of a baby sister to the family. At their best, the poems sharply bring into focus a person, a place, a thought, or a feeling. Together, they chart the shifting movements of Anne Marie's heart, reconciled over time to unwelcome changes and even, eventually, embracing them. At times Glass uses photographs and photo collage in the artwork in an unusually fresh approach to illustration, but it's his deft draftsmanship and creative use of color that give the pictures their staying power. Many of the illustrations seem to glow with infused, colored light that energizes the scenes, while a few pencil sketches bring a scene to life in gray and white. The book uses free verse and freewheeling art with distinction. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

ACCLAIM:

Selected as one of New York Public Library Best Books for Reading and Sharing for 2005

A Bank Street College of Education One of the Best Children's Books of the Year- 2006 Edition

The Washington Post, Saturday February 4, 2006 Child Reviewed, Page B6

SPY TREE is featured in Judy Bradbury's NEW book:  Children's Book Corner: A Read-Aloud Resource with Tips, Techniques, and Plans for Teachers, Librarians, and Parents Grades 5 and 6  (click to see it at Amazon)

Featured in Children's Writer Magazine August 2006  It's All Relative: WRiting About Children and Families

A summer reading pick for Ithaca City School District Librarians