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Summary
Summary
Told for the first time in a graphic novel, this is the exciting life story of John Muir--who sailed to America as a boy and ended up changing the world.
John Muir led an adventurous life, starting with his wild and playful boyhood in Scotland and culminating in his legendary exploits in America, where he became an inventor, an explorer, a bold champion of wilderness--and even made friends with a president! His heart was always in the outdoors and he aimed to experience all he could. Most importantly, though, John Muir told the world about the wonders of nature. His words made a difference and inspired people in many countries to start protecting planet Earth-- and they still do.
Author Notes
Julie Bertagna is an award-winning author of acclaimed books and short stories for children and young adults. Exodus has won various awards including a Friends of the Earth Eco Prize for Creativity and a Santa Monica Public Library Green Prize for Literature. Awards in her native Scotland include the Children's Book of the Year and the Catalyst Book Prize. Julie lives in Glasgow, Scotland. William Goldsmith is a British writer and illustrator teaching illustration at the British Higher School of Art and Design. His work has appeared in a range of publications and exhibitions in the United Kingdom and overseas. His other graphic novels are The Bind and Vignettes of Ystov, published by Jonathan Cape. William currently lives in Moscow, Russian Federation.
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-8-John Muir comes to life in this affectionate graphic format biography of the 19th-century environmentalist, inventor, and adventurer. Muir narrates, covering everything from childhood escapades to mountain climbing in Yosemite with President Theodore Roosevelt. Even as a boy, Muir was drawn to the outdoors, scampering across the Scottish countryside with his younger brother, Davie, and when he and his family moved to the United States, his love of nature grew stronger. Muir's travels as an adult throughout the country, seeing its beauty, grandeur, and, at times, danger, became fodder for writing that would inspire generations of readers. Goldsmith's charming cartoons, with black line drawings and washes of color, match the exuberant story. The author often relies on the subject's own words (a list of sources can be found at the end), and the result is a quick but deeply personal glimpse at a legendary figure. The text concludes with information on how Muir's work has spurred many to become lovers of the outdoors and protectors of the planet. VERDICT The graphic format will draw in many readers; a worthy purchase for most libraries, especially those seeking biographies.-Jody Kopple, Shady Hill School, Cambridge, MA © Copyright 2019. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
John Muir, a fascinating character in American environmental history, migrated to the U.S. from Scotland in the middle of the 19th century, where his fondness for nature sent him to explore and preserve some of America's most majestic sites, including Yosemite National Park. Divided into episodic chapters, this graphic biography shares the broad strokes of Muir's life in an accessible format. Bertagna (Exodus) recasts Muir as a mix of Paul Bunyan and Johnny Appleseed, following him as he journeys across the Atlantic, settles into the frontier, and gradually begins life-changing trips that allow him "to drink in the grand show of nature." The first-person voice adds a lively immediacy to the spare text, which is extended in Goldsmith's panels, rendered in thick, uncluttered lines washed with watercolors that evoke the natural world that Muir loved so much. Unfortunately, the book's omission of Native Americans perpetuates an image of a white explorer "discovering" long-inhabited lands. While the book introduces an important conservation figure and offers a moving ode to nature, it fails to present an inclusive, accurate view of U.S. history. Ages 8-12. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
This creatively rendered biography-in-comics, with Muir's imagined voice as narrator, is filled with the naturalist's adventures, from his childhood in Scotland to his pioneering conservation work and formation of America's National Parks. Illustrator Goldsmith's Muir is a feisty character, portrayed in loose pencil sketches with one or two accent colors. Vibrant spreads in the chapter transitions and interludes capture the stunning landscapes in which Muir found his purpose. Timeline. Glos. (c) Copyright 2019. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
In graphic-novel style, this supposed autobiography reveals details of John Muir's life.The table of contents lists nine chapters, intriguingly titled. The light tone continues on the next two pages, showing four loose-limbed, comical figures under the heading "Key Characters." Three of these characters are John: "as a childa young manan old man"; the fourth, a dog, bears the label "Stickeen." (More characters do follow.) As John tells his story, the text cleverly intersperses brief quotations from his own writings with phrases that he and the people in his life might reasonably have said. During early childhood in Dunbar, Scotland, the wee lad already relishes the natural world and hates studying indoors. The format accentuates the reactions of John's schoolmaster and his father, as they "THWOP" and "THWACK" John's curly head. When he moves to the United States, Muir's passion for nature accelerates, eventually leading to a "thousand-mile walk" from Indiana to Florida. He assumes the roles of inventor, husband, father, farmer, explorerand always conservationist, eventually establishing the Sierra Club and lobbying for the first national parks. The art works well for some scenes, such as a harrowing, near-death experience in Alaska. However, it is a major disappointment that Muir's descriptions of overwhelming natural beauty are illustrated with the same comical style and that readers must peruse closing notes to learn which words are Muir's and which are Bertagna's.Readers are treated to Muir's life journeybut, artwise, nothing resembles the source of his inspiration. (chronology, glossary, note on parks) (Historical fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
The name John Muir has come to be associated with the majesty of nature, which is fitting for the beloved naturalist, and this graphic biography in a loose, sketchy watercolor style traces the origins of that association, starting with Muir's modest beginnings, in first-person accounts of his travels and experiences. Muir would go on to travel the globe to raise awareness about the importance of conservation, and this inviting volume spends the majority of its time not on encapsulating his life but showcasing his own words and thoughts about the natural world, often in direct quotes. In this celebration of the notable conservationist, Bertagna makes a point of emphasizing the continuing need to care for and protect natural areas. Goldsmith's whimsical, doodle-like artwork, featuring brushy linework and color palettes that shift to match the mood, nicely echoes Bertagna's text. In particular, his fantasy elements nicely underscore Muir's sense of wonder about nature. A glossary and timeline make this laudatory look at a key figure especially classroom-friendly.--Peter Blenski Copyright 2010 Booklist
