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TOP TEN. Why War Is Never a Good Idea by Alice Walker and Stefano Vitale, ill. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishes, 2007. ISBN 978-0-06-075386-3

 

Annotation: Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker poetically explores the unintended impacts of war on people and the environment. Vitale uses layers of mixed media to powerfully illustrate complex subject matter.

 

Media: Acrylic paint, wax, mixed media.

 

Rating: 5Q/5P.

 

Curricular connections: History/Social Studies, Poetry, Visual/Performing Arts.

 

School level: Upper elementary, Middle school or junior high.

 

Significant aspects of book's artwork: Illustrator of ALA Notable Book When the Wind Stops, Stephano Vitale uses layers of mixed media to powerfully illustrate Walker's complex subject matter. Brightly colored acrylic paints are used to depict the people and environment that are not affected by the impacts of war in richly wrought double pages. As Walker begins to describes war, we begin to see the accompanying effects on the page, such as the description of people not seeing war because it is contained in the "Huges tires/Of a/Camouflaged/Vehicle/About to/Squash/Them flat" and the page contains a photograph of an actual rusted wheel that has torn into, crushed, and wrinkled the beautiful acrylic painting around it.

 

This begins the three-dimensional aspect brought to war as Vitale uses various alternative media such as wax, nails, and pieces of rusted metal to create texture to the illustrations. This creates time for the reader to contemplate not only the surprising choices of the illustrator, but how they work with the text to illustrate Walker's meaning. One double page panel in particular I have to mention because the detail is just incredible! Vitale uses what looks like wax or a thick gesso that at first glance looks like a hideous wave of noxious substance. Then the large skull appears out of the cresting sludge that makes the reader look closer to find that miniature soldiers in various stages of combat poses comprise the body of the rising wave. The color palette in this illustration, as well as the rest, are designed to work on the reader's senses. The wave looks noxious and grotesques because the colors are a mixture of of the bilious puke palette of greens, yellows, and browns. In contrast, the bright, rich range of color of the people inspire and delight.

 

NP 07/04/09

 

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Walker, Alice.  Why War is Never a Good Idea.  Illustrated by Stefano vitale.  New York:  Harper Collins, 2007.  ISBN 978-0-06-075386-3
Summary	Colorful illustrations and simple rhyming describe the hopelessness and destruction of war and how it destroys beauty and people.  Fiction.
Media	The artist’s palette demonstrates the contrast in a striking manner of peace and destruction.
Literary     Devices	Shows the impact of simple text. Rhyming.
Curriculum Connection	Use in grades 5 and up for social studies – community projects Science – environment, ecology Philosophy
Rating	5Q  5P
Theme	War is never a good answer.

Mary Smartt 8/2/09

 

Walker, A. (2007). Why war is never a good idea. Illustrated by Stefano Vitale. New York: Harpercollins. 0060753854 

 

 

Walker’s rhythmic non-rhyming verse sets a mood on each page that is subsequently shattered by the evil destruction of war. Her anthropomorphic characterization of war reveals an entity without thought, reason or humanity; war’s principal goal is always to destroy. Vitale’s watercolor illustrations, reminiscent of folk art, are integrated with three-dimensional objects like metal fragments and toy soldiers that obliterate once peaceful lives of humans and animals alike.

 

Rating: 5Q/4P

 

Personification:

Walker’s rhythmic non-rhyming verse sets a mood on each page that is subsequently shattered by the evil destruction of war. Her anthropomorphic characterization of war reveals an entity without thought, reason or humanity. Despite war existing since the beginning of humankind, Walker states that war lacks wisdom. Indeed, war’s principle goal (executed by humans) is always to destroy. Vitale’s watercolor illustrations, reminiscent of folk art, are integrated with three-dimensional objects like metal fragments and toy soldiers that obliterate once peaceful lives of humans and animals alike. His collage of media enhance the poetry and gives one pause to how such a horrible thing like war can continue to thrive today. TK 4/29/08

 

 

TK 4/20/08

 

 

 

 

 

Walker, A. (2007). Why war is never a good idea. Illustrations by Stefano Vitale. New York:  HarperCollins.

 

ISBN-13: 978-0-06-075385-6

A poetic text that explores the damage and destruction of war with regard to people, their physical and mental well-being, as well as our world.

 

Subject: War

 

Theme: War is a destructive, divisive force that doesn’t solve problems, it creates them.

Category: Non-fiction

 

Age Level Recommendation: Middle School (and up)

 

Rating: 5Q/3P

AAS 5-4-08

 

 

 

 

 

Citation: Why War is Never a Good Idea by Alice Walker and Stefano Vitale, ill. New York: HarperCollins, 2007.

 

 

ISBN: 0060753854

 

 

Annotation: Terrifying but truthful depiction of the physically and emotionally scarring effects of war on nature, animals, and humans. War is chaotic, meaningless, horrible, and never justified in any situation.

           

Media: Watercolors

 

 

Literary Device: Personification- War is depicted as a larger than life vicious monster who voraciously consumes animals, humans, nature, and everything in sight. “Here War is munching on a village, its missiles taking chunks, big bites out of it. Though War has eyes of its own.”

 

 

Curricular Connections: 5^th-8^th grade English/Language Arts or History/ Social Studies. Subject- War, Poetry, Alice Walker

 

 

Rating: 5Q/4P

 

S.F 06/21/09