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labunnywtf's review
5.0
This is the kind of book I would do reports on in grade school. Simple biographies that explained so much in so little space, with beautiful illustrations.
This sums up the life of Jim Henson so beautifully. As someone who absorbed multiple books about Henson and the muppets in general, I wasn't disappointed at all. And to cram someone's full and extraordinary life into less than 40 pages, that's saying something.
Lovely.
This sums up the life of Jim Henson so beautifully. As someone who absorbed multiple books about Henson and the muppets in general, I wasn't disappointed at all. And to cram someone's full and extraordinary life into less than 40 pages, that's saying something.
Lovely.
cimorene1558's review
3.0
Cute, but very, very, very low on detail. I'm really not sure who this is aimed at. There's really too little in the way of facts for a school project, and I'm not sure that kids at this level (it's an advanced picture book, so say 8 years old or so) read biography for fun, much. Maybe as a readaloud for a class that's starting a biography project?
arundlestl's review
1.0
This book caught my eye because the newest Muppet movie is being released on Thanksgiving. While Jim Henson was an extraordinary man, this book was less than extraordinary. His work on Sesame Street isn’t mentioned until page 24, even though I would consider this his greatest contribution, and the intended audience of this book (children) would probably agree. It is, at best, a brief overview of Henson’s childhood and professional life, with his personal life barely mentioned. Conversely, the illustrations are amazing! There is a picture on every page and the detail is remarkable. My favorite illustration featured Jim, holding an Emmy award, surrounded by the residents of Sesame Street.
I wanted to give it more than one star simply because of the material, but I just don't think that's fair.
kelleemoye's review
4.0
Full review at: http://www.unleashingreaders.com/?p=1392
I love Jim Henson. I remember when he passed away and I was devastated. I thought that Sesame Street was dead too, but Jim Henson’s influence is stronger than death. He has continued to live through his show, characters, and legacy. Kathleen Krull does an amazing job of sharing with the reader what made Jim Henson who he was and how he became (I believe) the most influential person when it came to children and children’s entertainment in the 20th century.
I love Jim Henson. I remember when he passed away and I was devastated. I thought that Sesame Street was dead too, but Jim Henson’s influence is stronger than death. He has continued to live through his show, characters, and legacy. Kathleen Krull does an amazing job of sharing with the reader what made Jim Henson who he was and how he became (I believe) the most influential person when it came to children and children’s entertainment in the 20th century.
danicamidlil's review
3.0
This was a nice grade-school level biography of such a wonderful man. Most things about Jim Henson make me cry because I'm so sappy about him, but this was more straight-forward factual than memorial of how wonderful he was.
nerfherder86's review
4.0
Great biography of Jim Henson, one of my heroes. The art is cute, although a little odd in that the human heads are drawn a little oversized, so that they almost look like Muppets too! I think this was deliberate, but who knows. I was just happy to read a new book about Jim Henson for kids.
beecheralyson's review
4.0
A nice picture book biography on Jim Henson. Great for 2nd to 4th or 5th grade.
luann's review
3.0
I learned things I didn't know about Jim Henson from reading this, and isn't that the point of reading a biography? But somehow when I got to the end, I felt like there hadn't been enough. Too much focus on Sesame Street and not enough on his other projects, maybe? We always watched The Muppet Show growing up and I definitely wanted to read more about that. We watched Sesame Street a lot, too, but it never felt like "my" show. Also it seems like there's been a lot written about Sesame Street elsewhere.
There were brief mentions of some of his other projects. I had forgotten about Labyrinth! More about that would have been nice. And I would have really liked to see a complete list of his shows and projects. I also missed having an author's note at the end, which can help to fill in some of the gaps from the text and to explain why the author chose to write about that particular person.
But despite my problems with the book, this is a nice biography for students. The illustrations are fabulous! And I loved learning more about Jim Henson's early life. I loved the point made that you should choose to do something with your life that you really care about and that will make a difference in the world. Jim Henson definitely did that! Can you imagine a world without Kermit, or Bert & Ernie, or Miss Piggy?
There were brief mentions of some of his other projects. I had forgotten about Labyrinth! More about that would have been nice. And I would have really liked to see a complete list of his shows and projects. I also missed having an author's note at the end, which can help to fill in some of the gaps from the text and to explain why the author chose to write about that particular person.
But despite my problems with the book, this is a nice biography for students. The illustrations are fabulous! And I loved learning more about Jim Henson's early life. I loved the point made that you should choose to do something with your life that you really care about and that will make a difference in the world. Jim Henson definitely did that! Can you imagine a world without Kermit, or Bert & Ernie, or Miss Piggy?