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Summary
Summary
Welcome to Topsy-Turvydom, a magicalkingdom (well, more like an opera stage)full of pirates, policemen, fairies, and fakemustaches! Mr. Gilbert and Mr. Sullivanhave ruled this kingdom together in peace,but one day, Mr. Sullivan decides he'shad enough. Every opera they write is thesame silly old story, and he's ready forsomething different. Something serious!Mr. Gilbert is stunned. He's lost hisbusiness partner and his best friend, andhe needs a brilliant idea in order to gethim back. When Mr. Gilbert comes acrossa Japanese street fair, inspiration strikes,and The Mikado is born! Gilbert andSullivan reunite for their greatest workyet, showing that good things can comefrom an argument between friends.
Author Notes
Children's author and illustrator Jonah Winter was born in Fort Worth, Texas in 1962. He has created many popular books, including works about baseball and biographies of famous individuals including Frida Kahlo, Roberto Clemente, and Barack Obama.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Covering much of the same ground as Mike Lee's marvelous 1999 biopic Topsy-Turvy (with a G-rated filter, of course), Winter (Barack) and Egielski (The End) present the backstory of The Mikado. The storytelling gets off to a slow start; Winter first lets readers know that "jolly old England was not so jolly" (an early spread includes a Dickensian scene of a workhouse), then gives a somewhat tortured explanation of "topsy-turvy" that will confuse children unfamiliar with the pair's oeuvre (fans, on the other hand, may not appreciate the subtle dissing of The Pirates of Penzance and other works). It's only at midpoint that the narrative gains any momentum, as Gilbert's Japanese-fueled inspiration persuades Sullivan to collaborate on the work that will become their masterpiece. Unfortunately, Egielski's pictures never take flight; while his textured watercolors feel theatrical and he dutifully incorporates the ornate detailing and eccentricities of Victorian life, the images remain flat. Ages 4-8. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
(Primary) For the young Gilbert Sullivan aficionado-or more likely the children of GS fans who want to pass on their passion-this lightly fictionalized biography is as welcome as flowers that bloom in the spring. Winter's jaunty text follows a brief time during their collaboration when Sullivan became tired of setting Gilbert's repetitious plots to music-a conflict that is resolved with the creation of The Mikado, one of their most popular operettas. After quickly setting the scene ("Children worked in factories. Queen Victoria frowned. Everything was grim. Everything was dark-except...in the make-believe kingdom of Topsy-Turvydom"), the narrative introduces Mr. Gilbert, Mr. Sullivan, and Mr. D'Oyly Carte, who owns the theater and tries to settle the feud. Winter invents dialogue and combines a few scenes, but aside from one misleading plot point in a synopsis of The Mikado, even GS purists should applaud his attention to detail and recent scholarship. Egielski's vibrantly colored illustrations help clarify a potentially confusing story. Using crisp black outlines and a deep Victorian palette, he frames some early scenes in simplified settings and does his best to make the mutton-chopped, mustachioed main characters distinguishable from one another. But repeat readers will most appreciate the wealth of detail in the many scenes that use cutaways, especially successful when showing the theater: onstage, backstage, audience, and even the street outside. While Egielski takes some minor liberties (the simple blocks Gilbert uses to plan the staging here look like the Tub People) the end result is a collaboration as smooth and entertaining as any of Gilbert and Sullivan's. From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
*Starred Review* Setting the scene in Victorian times, when jolly old England was not so jolly, this picture book contrasts grim poverty on the streets with a fanciful world created on the stage by popular musical performances. For many years, Gilbert and Sullivan have collaborated on successful operas, but now Mr. Sullivan finds Mr. Gilbert's stories silly and his plots repetitive. First they quarrel, then they feud. But after a space of time, Mr. Gilbert takes the criticism to heart and, inspired by Japanese artifacts and performers, writes The Mikado, which Mr. Sullivan sets to music. An author's note provides biographical information on the principals and comments on their collaborative work, its importance, and its appeal. The clearly written story comes alive in a series of distinctive ink-and-watercolor illustrations that are full of intriguing details and show great skill in the use of color, shading, and composition. Many of the double-page spreads show street scenes that incorporate cutaway walls, creating proscenium arches to highlight settings and frame the action in a suitably theatrical way. If the artists' quarrel seems an unlikely topic for a picture book, its resolution is a hopeful one for any audience. A show stopper.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2009 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-4-Winter and Egielski succeed admirably in making the relationship between a Victorian librettist and a composer of comic operas accessible to children. More astonishing still is that the silliness and drama are rooted in reality, as revealed in the author's note. Readers initially encounter the dark cloud of poverty that characterized this period. The mood is lifted at the "topsy-turvy" world of the opera, but it quickly becomes evident that Sullivan is tired of the same old silly situations: "Fairies with battery-operated wings got married to stuffy old men in bad wigs." Hearing Gilbert's next idea, Sullivan snaps. The two are at an impasse, until Gilbert stumbles on a Japanese street fair that provides the exotic new setting needed to renew the friendship and conceive The Mikado. The pirate, sailor, constable, and kimono-clad woman interacting on the cover will draw children inside, across the dedication page, and into the theater, where this slice of history unfolds in the foreground, as if on a stage, framed by changing proscenium arches, architectural models, or spotlights. Winter balances interesting descriptions, juvenile arguing, and funny details, such as the names that Gilbert penned, e.g., "Titipu" and "Yum-Yum." Egielski notes that his watercolor and ink scenes draw inspiration from Peter Max, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Hiroshige, among others. (Sendak's influence is discernable, too.) There are surprises around each corner, from the miniature stage and simple wooden dolls that Gilbert used to test his ideas to the same scene realized as a vibrant Japanese finale. A class act.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Author and illustrator set the opening scene as impeccably as their subjects: Life in Victorian England is grim. Even the Queen frowns as her coach drives through the dreary rain. But there is one place where life is brighter. A quick page turn reveals the light, topsy-turvy world of the opera stage. Winter explains that the opera is where "grown-ups acted silly, and everything got very, very, very confused." And oh boy, did it ever. One day Gilbert and Sullivan, the famed lyricist/composer duo, get into an argument. Sullivan accuses Gilbert of writing the same opera over and over. With grumps and grumbles and scowls on their faces, they refuse to work with each other anymore. However, out of the argument comes the inspiration for The Mikado. Lessons of friendship and forgiveness slip in, and Egielski's saturated, theatrical tableaux add warmth and weight, but the intended audience is as perplexing as, well, a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta. Budding maestros will enjoy this dramatic tale, but youngsters unable to place the context may not relate much to these two mustached men. (author's note, website) (Informational picture book. 6-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.