Dust Devil - Hardcover

Anne Isaacs is the award-winning author of many books for children, including Swamp Angel, a Caldecott Honor Book, an ALA-ALSC Notable Book, and a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book; Cat Up a Tree, a New York Public Library Title for Reading and Sharing; Torn Thread, an ALA-ALSC Notable Book and a National Jewish Book Award finalist; and Pancakes for Supper, winner of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Best Book Award. Ms. Isaacs lives in Berkeley, California. Visit her at www.anneisaacs.com.

Paul O. Zelinsky is one of the most highly acclaimed illustrators working today. He has received a Caldecott Medal for his telling of Rapunzel, and three Caldecott Honors, for Rumpelstiltskin, Hansel and Gretel, and Swamp Angel, which the New York Times Book Review called “in all ways superb.” The illustrator of Emily Jenkins’s popular Toys Go Out and its sequel, Toy Dance Party, Mr. Zelinsky is also the creator of the bestselling mechanical book The Wheels on the Bus. He lives in Brooklyn, New York. Learn more about him at www.paulozelinsky.com.

K-Gr 4–Zelinsky and Isaacs pull out all the stops in this dazzling companion to Swamp Angel (Dutton, 1994). Angelica "Angel" Longrider, the "wildest wildcat in Tennessee," has moved to Montana, "a country so sizable even Angel could fit in." The West seems to suit the feisty heroine, but she has trouble finding a horse powerful enough to carry her until she wrestles a violent storm and Dust Devil emerges mythically out of the fray. Isaacs's text, rich in playful language and alliteration, never misses the opportunity to make the most of the tall-tale convention as the formidable duo embark on a series of action-packed adventures centered on vanquishing a band of backward-speaking bad guys. Zelinsky has a heyday masterfully illustrating the high jinks with his meticulous oil paintings on cedar, aspen, and maple veneers, all of which are elegantly encased by a thin red border. Using softly glowing tones, he brands his own version of a Western folk style to flawlessly render the big-sky setting. The variety of layouts such as ovals, strips, and spot art effectively propel the hilarious, multilayered plot forward while panoramic spreads breathtakingly showcase the story's most dramatic moments. Readers will chuckle over the absurdity of the giant mosquitoes ridden by nasty Bart and his gang and learn the origins of buttes, geysers, the Grand Canyon, and even the California gold rush. A stunning tour de force and a satisfying continuation of Angel's saga.Caroline Ward, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT
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