PRINTS CHARMING
Written: Feb 04 '06 (Updated Feb 04 '06)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Impressive Potato Print Art. One Potato
Cons: Only fifteen numbers illustrated. Only one potato.
The Bottom Line: Though the artwork is commendable, this book's value as a teaching/learning tool is limited. Vegetables other than potatoes wouldn't rank highly on the interest list of most kids.
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| nagels's Full Review: |
Lady Spudella wrung her dainty hands nervously as the two rivals for her affections faced each other in the cavernous, cold hall, their shadows eerily wavering beneath the flickering torches.
Staring eye to eye to eye to eye to eye to eye Prince Spudalot and the Evil Russettin clenched their peeler swords and grimaced.
“Defend yourself, Prince. Prepare to fry. For the Lady shall be mine.”
The words burned like hot oil through every starchy fiber of the valiant vegetable prince. Glancing as quickly as one with multiple eyes can towards the lovely spuddess, the Prince sprouted towards the rotten potato, slicing the air menacingly with his cheddar sharp weapon.
Oops. Wrong book. One Potato is actually a Counting Book of Potato Prints by Diana Pomeroy. This 28 page hardback book is illustrated with some truly beautiful and impressive potato print artwork by Ms. Pomeroy. On each page illustrations of vegetables or fruits are used to teach and reinforce counting concepts. Each large fonted number is accompanied by the matching word number and the name of the vegetable or fruit. The artwork is all the more impressive when one considers the medium (though large spuds work better than mediums) used by the artist. The textures and details achieved with the potato stamps must be seen up close to be appreciated.
Teaching and Learning Value
A child “reading” this book sees and counts one potato, two eggplants, three ears of corn, four pears, five carrots, six tomatoes, seven oranges, eight strawberries, nine turnips, and ten cherries. After the number ten the teens are skipped and the numbers 20, 30,40, and fifty follow, with 100 sunflower seeds bringing the book to a close. If you’ve been following, the book is thus comprised of only fifteen numbers illustrated with vegetables or fruits. To be a truly useful teaching tool, this book should include more numbers, especially the troublesome teens.
I showed this book to several students ranging from five to seven years of age. None of them were very excited by the pictures and none recognized the eggplants or the radishes.
I used the book for number recognition and counting with the numbers one to ten. With the larger numbers, we just did number recognition and, depending on the age of the child, some exploration and analysis of the vegetable or fruit names in the text.
Except for the one potato page, the five-year-old showed little interest in the book and was quickly ready to move on to another activity.
I am impressed by the artistry and skill of the author but not in the book as a teaching tool. It’s not a book youngsters would relish returning to repeatedly and the absence of the teen numbers gives it limited usefulness as a learning vehicle also.
How Does She Do It?
Having experimented with potato prints several times myself, I have a great respect for what Diana Pomeroy has accomplished. I don’t have the intrinsic ability or patience to come even close to the potato print wizardry she has mastered. The last two pages of her book contain instructions and detailed explanation of potato printing. Here’s a summary of her technique borrowed from another source.
“My designs all start with an X-acto blade and a cut potato. I then carefully carve a detailed image to create a bas-relief surface similar to a rubber stamp. The next step is to carefully paint the images with a small brush and acrylics. All the shading and detail is done directly onto the potato through either the carving or the painting process.“
The directions in One Potato are much more simplified and suitable for a joint project by parent and child. As for me, I’ll just be content to read about potatoes and enjoy potato art as a spectator and not a participant, preferring to dip my spuds in butter, not paint.
One Potato: A Counting Book of Potato Prints
Publication Date – 5/2000
ISBN: 0152023305
NO POTATOES WERE HARMED IN THE WRITING OF THIS REVIEW
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Recommended:
No
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