A Boy Names Giotto was written by Paolo Guarnieri and illustrated by Bimba Landmann. It was translated by Jonathan Galassi. It was orginigally published in Italy in 1998 by Edizioni Arka and then republished in America in 1999 by Douglas & McIntyre Ltd. It is a multi-cultural, informational text.
This is the story of Giotto, a youg boy in Italy who herds sheep for his father all day everyday, but dreams of doing something much different. Giotto spends his days ignoring the sheep and instead drawing pictures in the sand and on the stones around him. He loves to draw and dreams of one day drawing all the time, for a living. One day the famous painter Cimabue comes to his town with his famous painting, Madonna with Child. Giotto is enthralled and follows the painter back to his studio to see how he works. Giotto gets up the nerve to talk to Cimabue and he shows Giotta how to paint frescos, which will last forever, just like Giotto has dreamed of. The next day Giotto starts painting on the rocks out in the field where he watches the sheep. He loses track of time and finally his father and Cimabue come and find him in the field and are both amazed at the painting he has created. Cimabue begs Giotto’s father to let Giotto come study with him at his art school. Giotto’s parents insist that he is too young but they promise to send Giotto to him when he is older. Giotto is only 8 when Cimabue finds him, but 7 years later he goes to school and excels past his classmates in painting frescos. At the end of the story he leaves his home to go to Assisi to paint frescos that will last forever.
This is a cool story about a little boy who doesn’t fit in with his surroundings. This little boy knows he likes to paint, but he also knows that his father will not approve. This is a story about not fitting in and following your dreams even so. This is a lesson that can be learned all over the world because kids in America struggle with not fitting in just like kids in Europe, China, etc. The pictures in this book were really interesting. The illustrator used gold to make Giotto’s painting stand out because the rest of the book is done in orange and brown shades. I really loved the historical background of this book because of the art history behind it. Not many children’s books address art history which would make a great lesson for students. Kids love to draw and create things and this story could incorporate really well into a lesson about frescos or painting or even a famous painter.
This is the story of Giotto, a youg boy in Italy who herds sheep for his father all day everyday, but dreams of doing something much different. Giotto spends his days ignoring the sheep and instead drawing pictures in the sand and on the stones around him. He loves to draw and dreams of one day drawing all the time, for a living. One day the famous painter Cimabue comes to his town with his famous painting, Madonna with Child. Giotto is enthralled and follows the painter back to his studio to see how he works. Giotto gets up the nerve to talk to Cimabue and he shows Giotta how to paint frescos, which will last forever, just like Giotto has dreamed of. The next day Giotto starts painting on the rocks out in the field where he watches the sheep. He loses track of time and finally his father and Cimabue come and find him in the field and are both amazed at the painting he has created. Cimabue begs Giotto’s father to let Giotto come study with him at his art school. Giotto’s parents insist that he is too young but they promise to send Giotto to him when he is older. Giotto is only 8 when Cimabue finds him, but 7 years later he goes to school and excels past his classmates in painting frescos. At the end of the story he leaves his home to go to Assisi to paint frescos that will last forever.
This is a cool story about a little boy who doesn’t fit in with his surroundings. This little boy knows he likes to paint, but he also knows that his father will not approve. This is a story about not fitting in and following your dreams even so. This is a lesson that can be learned all over the world because kids in America struggle with not fitting in just like kids in Europe, China, etc. The pictures in this book were really interesting. The illustrator used gold to make Giotto’s painting stand out because the rest of the book is done in orange and brown shades. I really loved the historical background of this book because of the art history behind it. Not many children’s books address art history which would make a great lesson for students. Kids love to draw and create things and this story could incorporate really well into a lesson about frescos or painting or even a famous painter.
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