Nice selections for artistic expressions

The art/pottery studio of my mother, Hannah's grandmother, is one to covet. It sits under oak trees made monstrous by coastal Alabama's lush environment. Sunny walls of yellow inspire Grandma as well as her visiting granddaughters to create all sorts of vessels. Recently, Hannah's foray into high-school art prompted her father to relinquish a corner of his basement workshop for an art studio. The envious sisters have made claim to the space once they, too, are in upper-level art classes. Until then, they salivate over the corner where paint can be spilled or swirled and works in progress do not have to be cleaned up before dinner.

Reviewed by Hannah:

A IS FOR ART: An Abstract Alphabet. By Stephen T. Johnson. Simon & Schuster. All ages. $16.99.

I remember getting a different Walter Wick I Spy book every year when I was younger. A Is for Art is similar in that the reader must find the letters of the alphabet in the selected works of art. The quirky phrases that go along with each piece of art use alliteration and assonance with each featured letter. For example, "Variations on a Vertical: Violent vents? Vibrantly vivid vermicelli? Vanishing vowels on verdant vinyl? A visually vertiginous vocalise?" While the publisher recommends this picture book for ages 5-9, it uses SAT vocabulary. I found several words that I did not recognize. The works of modern abstract art are phenomenal, and I recommend it to art lovers of all ages.

SKETCHES. By Eric Walters. Penguin. Ages 11 and up. 226 pages. $15.99.

Dana, a runaway, lives on the streets with fellow homeless teenagers Ashley and Brent. Together the three find little jobs to earn money while sleeping in a different location every night. Dana, a talented young artist, puts graffiti on bridges in the area to relieve stress. One day she is caught in the act by a strange man who claims to run an art center for homeless teenagers in the city. Curious, Dana decides to check out the studio. She finds that the studio, Sketches, has more than just art supplies and kind workers: It has ways to make money. Dana and her friends draw chalk reproductions of famous art pieces on the city sidewalks. Passers-by donate enough money for Ashley and Brent to rent an apartment as Dana sorts out her family's problems, which caused her to run away. Sketches is a very powerful read with the real grit of homelessness combined with the power of art.

MINI MASTERS SERIES. Chronicle. Ages infant to 4. $6.99 each.

Andy Warhol's Colors, Counting With Wayne Thiebaud, Matisse Dance for Joy, Dreaming with Rousseau, On an Island with Gauguin -- every title from Chronicle's Mini Masters series encourages art appreciation even in the very youngest of readers. These durable board books are bright and colorful and most have rhyming text to accompany each masterpiece.

Reviewed by Monica:

BABY ANIMALS: Little Ones at Play in 20 Works of Art. By William Lach. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Ages 3-7. $14.95.

Frolicking kittens, sleeping tiger cubs and porcupettes can be found in lavish art in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. The museum houses more than 2 million pieces of art. Lach has chosen 20 paintings to showcase baby animals in beautiful art. At the end of the book, thumbnails of all 20 paintings are detailed. Unique and lovely!

DELICIOUS: The Life and Art of Wayne Thiebaud. By Susan Goldman Rubin. Chronicle. Ages 9-14. 108 pages. $15.95.

Looking for a colorfully illustrated biography for middle-grade readers? Susan Rubin, also the author of the Mini Masters board books, tells the story of a 20th century American artist, Wayne Thiebaud. An art-history buff himself, Thiebaud became famous for his paintings of items such as pinball and gumball machines, cupcakes and pieces of cake and other scenes of Americana. Born in 1920, Thiebaud teaches art and art history part-time in California.

I AM REMBRANDT'S DAUGHTER. By Lynn Cullen. Bloomsbury. Ages 12 and up. 307 pages. $16.95.

Historical fiction remains my favorite genre, and this selection did not disappoint. Cornelia van Rijn, Rembrandt van Rijn's illegitimate daughter, hungers to paint as her famous father does. When Cornelia's mother dies of the plague, Rembrandt's depression seems to plunge him into a despair no one can reach. He dismisses artistic trends that could elevate their status monetarily and chooses to paint only what he feels is worthy stylistically. While Cornelia worries, she also admires her father tremendously. They live in a time when emotions are kept in check, however; she does not reveal her ambitions or passions. Mistakenly, she thinks her father does not care about her or know she exists.

The intricate plot and setting in 17th century Amsterdam will entice readers of all ages, even adults who enjoy art and historical fiction. The book is extremely well written and disappointing only in the lack of information that exists about what really became of Cornelia van Rijn. Of course I had to Google her once I finished the book!

Other notable artistic selections:

I, JUAN de PAREJA: The Story of a Great Painter and the Slave He Helped Become an Artist. By Elizabeth Borton De Trevino. Square Fish. Ages 10 and up. 192 pages. $6.99.

PAINTING THE WILD FRONTIER: The Art and Adventures of George Catlin. By Susanna Reich. Houghton Mifflin. Ages 10 and up. 160 pages. $21.

■ Monica and Hannah Young can be reached at cyoung9@triad.rr.com. View book reviews at the Journal in Education site at www.jie.journalnow.com.