Girls Standing on Lawns

Girls Standing on Lawns

Girls Standing on Lawns is a unique collaboration between renowned artist and bestselling children’s book author Maira Kalman and New York Times bestselling writer Daniel Handler, better known as Lemony Snicket. This clever book contains 40 vintage photographs from the collection of The Museum of Modern Art, New York, more than a dozen original paintings by Kalman inspired by the photographs, and brief, lyrical texts by Handler. Poetic and thought-provoking, Girls Standing on Lawns is a meditation on memories, childhood, nostalgia, home, family, and the act of seeing. The gorgeous visual material sets the stage for what Handler succinctly describes as “a photograph, a painting, a sentence, a pose.” Girls, women, families, and even pets from days gone by grace the pages, looking out at us, enticing readers to imagine these people, their lives—and where they have gone. Praise for Girls Standing on Lawns "Kalman supplements the mostly black-and-white, anonymous, amateur snapshots with colorful paintings inspired by the photographs. Handler adds alternately wry, pithy, poignant—and always succinct—commentary to most spreads, inviting readers to ponder the people and scenes as well as their own family photos." -- Booklist " Handler provides free verse that is both spare and sparse throughout the collection, contextualizing the thematic groupings and offering imaginative insight into what might have motivated the preservation of such frozen moments. The project is interesting and the images thought provoking." -- The Bulletin of The Center for Children’s Books Gr 7 Up—Vernacular photography is, as this book describes, photographs taken without artistic ambition. That is what a traditional snapshot is, or in this age of Instagram and digital photography, what it was. Who snapped the photos is unknown. The people and places are long gone, but these photographs of girls standing on lawns remain. Found, anonymous, and removed from their original context, these snapshots have now been given a new life. With text by Handler and paintings by Kalman based on snapshots from collection of the Museum of Modern Art, this is a short, beautiful, and nostalgic book. The spare text ponders the matter-of-factness depicted in the snapshots and the occasional colorful paintings are as playful as the original black-and-white source material. A girl with her arms awkwardly crossed is accompanied by the statement "My whole life I have not known where to put my hands." Another photo of a girl standing on a sidewalk instead of the nearby lawn is accompanied by the answer to the obvious but unasked question, "Because I didn't want to ruin my shoes, is why." The minimal text has the rhythm and simplicity of a children's book, but there is a thought-provoking complexity present that will appeal to teens and adults. This title can also help to inspire creativity, as the idea of using found photographs as the basis for a narrative provides endless possibilities for young adults, teachers, and programming librarians.—Billy Parrott, Mid-Manhattan Library, NYPL This first in a series will delight some fans of Handler and Kalman’s Printz Honor Book Why We Broke Up (2011), but it may leave others scratching their heads. Serious and humorous historical photographs of girls and women, drawn from the vernacular collection of the Museum of Modern Art, are presented with enough white space to evoke an exhibit. Kalman supplements the mostly black-and-white, anonymous, amateur snapshots with colorful paintings inspired by the photographs. Handler adds alternately wry, pithy, poignant—and always succinct—commentary to most spreads, inviting readers to ponder the people and scenes as well as their own family photos. Is this book a curiosity? An invitation to creative writing or art? Maybe even a call to action? “Stand for something, stand for something!” writes Handler. “Otherwise what do you stand for, why are you even standing?” Ultimately the best audience may be MoMA visitors hoping to extend the existential feeling of a museum visit, and who might want to gift it along with their own vintage family photo of people on lawns. So, where do you stand? Grades 6-12. --Cindy Dobrez Maira Kalman is a bestselling and award-winning artist, illustrator, and writer whose books include 13 Words (with Lemony Snicket), And the Pursuit of Happiness, and The Elements of Style . Her artwork has been the subject of 14 solo exhibitions and has also been featured in group exhibitions in major museums. Girls Standing on Lawns is the first title in a series of illustrated children’s books Kalman will be publishing with MoMA, inspired by MoMA’s photography collection. Daniel Handler is the internationally renowned author of the A Series of Unfortunate Events series, whose books have sold over 60 million copies in 44 languages.