Her right foot

PreS-Gr 3-Eggers examines some of the history of the Statue of Liberty, including its creation in France and reconstruction in New York. He points out unique details, then focuses on her right foot. Many may not have noticed that this foot is in motion, and the author considers the message that the statue sends about liberty being an active, not a passive, condition. This book lends itself well to audio, as it is written in a chatty, conversational tone, and Dion Graham's narration does a nice job drawing the listener in. Since the text references Shawn Harris's illustrations, it would be best used with the print book. The recording includes two tracks-one with and one without page-turn signals. -VERDICT This is a nicely timed, evocative examination of a national icon, and a reminder of the principles for which she stands.-Teresa Bateman, Brigadoon Elementary School, Federal Way, WA © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In digressive, idiosyncratic prose, Eggers outlines the history of the Statue of Liberty, gradually leading readers into the detail hes really interested in--the statues right foot, poised as if to take a step. While it takes rather a long time to get there, the books point that the Statue of Liberty is an immigrant, too. And this is why shes moving is well made and worthy of attention. However, Eggers clutters up the resonance of his theme with arch posturings (You have likely heard of a place called France, begins the book) and twee asides (in teasing us about the statues intended destination, Eggers asks, Is she going to the West Village to look for vintage Nico records?). Such fatuities surround the interesting facts about the statues construction and Eggerss heartfelt thoughts about its meaning with a sea of banality. While the construction-paper collage illustrations arent always stylistically coherent from page to page, individual illustrations are frequently arresting, such as a silhouette portrait of the statue seemingly gliding past a full moon in a salmon-hued sky. roger Sutton (c) Copyright 2017. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Everyone knows what the Statue of Liberty stands forbut, as Eggers notes, she's not actually "standing" at all. Taking his time, as usual, at getting to the point, Eggers opens with the often told tale of the monument's origins, preliminary construction, deconstruction, and shipping to "a city called New York, which is in a state also called New York." He describes the statue's main features, from crown to gown ("a very heavy kind of garment," likely to cause "serious lower back issues")and points out that her right heel is not planted but lifted. What does this signify? That "she is walking! This 150 foot woman is on the go!" She's stepping out into the harbor, he suggests, to give new arrivals from Italy and Norway, Cambodia and Estonia, Syrians, Liberians, and all who have or will come an eager welcome. After all, he writes, she's an immigrant too, and: "She is not content to wait." In Harris' ink-and-construction-paper collages, Parisian street scenes give way to close-up views of the brown (later green) ambulatory statue, alternating with galleries of those arrivals and their descendants, who are all united in their very diversity of age, sex, dress, and skin color. Photos, including one of the Emma Lazarus poem, cap this urgent defense of our "Golden Door." Occasionally mannered but heartfelt throughout and indisputably timely. (bibliography, source list) (Picture book. 9-13, adult) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.