WALDEN

Philomel Books, 1990. 1st Edition Printing Unknown. Hardcover. As New/Very Good. Robert Sabuda. CONDITION: UNREAD, but not perfect, 1990 Philomel hardcover (green boards) & dust jacket (in mylar cover), first edition, no printing given. Problem: DJ is price clipped and there is a blank bookplate covering - who knows what. Color illustrations by the more-than-great Robert Sabuda evoke past days on the pond. CONTENT: Shrinking Walden into picture book size is somewhat like trying to fit Moby Dick into an aquarium. Still, Lowe's selections from Thoreau's iconoclastic work will give children a brief taste of this classic. Using only quotations from the original work, Lowe tells the story of Thoreau's year in the woods, emphasizing his descriptions of nature,stet comma and action rather than his philosophical musings. Readers see the young Thoreau putting shingles on his roof, hoeing beans, welcoming a stranger; they can revel in the natural wonders he describes--the "whip-poor-wills," in summer, the drifting snow in winter, the ice breaking in the pond in spring. Sabuda's superb linoleum-cut prints lend a hard-edged brilliance to the dark woods--where sunlight is filtered through etched leaves, and moonlight shimmers on the waters of the pond made famous by a young man's experiment with life. All ages.