PICTURE BOOK REVIEW: The Shape of Things by Dean Robbins & Matt Tavares

 

THE SHAPE OF THINGS:

How Mapmakers Picture Our World

written by Dean Robbins, illustrated by Matt Tavares

Alfred A. Knopf, 2024

ISBN: 978-0-593-47925-4

Source: Blue Slip Media

Ages 4-8

Nonfiction

All opinions expressed are solely my own.

Book cover & summary provided by the publisher & Blue Slip Media.

ABOUT THE BOOK

How did the first people explore the land they lived on? How did civilizations expand their boundaries and chart courses into new lands? Learn about the history of cartography across cultures in this ode to mapmaking through the ages. Join history's first mapmakers as they explore the wonders of the world! In these pages, you’ll find the tools ancient people used to depict their surroundings, methods different cartographers developed to survey new lands, and how we’ve arrived at modern mapmaking today. Above all else, the thread that runs throughout thousands of years of civilization is the spirit of exploration that helps us measure the shape of things around us, the world we all share.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR

Dean Robbins is a journalist and children's book author. His previous books include, The Fastest Girl on Earth!, Two Friends; Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass, Miss Paul and the President, and Margaret and the Moon. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with his family. To learn more, visit https://deanrobbins.net/

Matt Tavares is a New York Times bestselling author-illustrator of over twenty titles. His books have been featured in: ALA Notable, Parents' Choice Gold Awards, and twelve were chosen for the Society of Illustrators Original Art exhibit. His artwork has been exhibited at the Brandywine River Museum, the Eric Carle Museum, and the Mazza Museum. Matt lives in Maine with his wife, Sarah, and their two daughters. Visit his website: matttavares.com

REVIEW

This gorgeous, informative book explains in as clear a way as I've ever seen, what a map is, why they are important, and how the way they are made has changed over millennia. Highlighting a few of the many maps created throughout earth's human history, Robbins shares with young readers how people have created maps using a variety of different materials such as mammoth tusk, rock, sand, papyrus, paper, and computer. The back matter references the preserved maps described in the text on a timeline for when they were created. The tools used in surveying and creating maps over the years are also highlighted in both the text and art. Tavares' digital illustrations are stunning in their beauty as they complement Robbins' straight-forward text. The research that must have gone into each illustration regarding clothing, setting, tools, and setting makes each picture a work of art in and of itself. A fabulous book about the value of knowing where you are and the power of maps and mapmaking. Highly recommended.

SAMPLE ILLUSTRATIONS