The Tale of the Firebird

by Gennady Spirin, Gennady Spirin (Illustrator)

Overview

In all the world there is said to be nothing more beautiful than the Firebird. When Ivan-Tsarevitch, youngest son of the Tsar, goes on a quest for the amazing bird, he finds himself flying over mountains and woods on a talking wolf, confronting a wicked Baba Yaga, and rescuing an enchanted princess from Koshchei the Immortal. But when he returns from his magical journey, he brings home the most precious treasure of all.

Gennady Spirin brings this original version of the Firebird tale from his native Russia and has illustrated it in his trademark rich, luminous style. This retelling of a classic is sure to become the new standard.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780399235849
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	09/30/2002
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.44(w) x 12.00(h) x 0.38(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Gennady Spirin was born in 1948 in a small city near Moscow. A graduate of the Strogonov Academy of Fine Arts, he is noted for his beautiful illustrations, meticulously researched and exquisitely executed in pencil and watercolor. His work has brought him international renown as many awards, including the Gold Medal of the Society of Illustrators, the Golden Apple of the Bratislava International Biennale of children's book illustration, First Prize for Illustration at the Barcelona International Children's Book Fair, and the Premio Grafico at the Bologna Children's Book Fair. His book Gulliver's Adventures in Lilliput (retold by Ann Keay Beneduce) was chosen one of the Ten Best Illustrated Books of the Year by the New York Times Book Review.

Gennady Spirin came to the United States in 1991 and now lives with his wife and their three sons in Princeton, New Jersey.copyright &py; 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All rights reserved.
Gennady Spirin was born in 1948 in a small city near Moscow. A graduate of the Strogonov Academy of Fine Arts, he is noted for his beautiful illustrations, meticulously researched and exquisitely executed in pencil and watercolor. His work has brought him international renown as many awards, including the Gold Medal of the Society of Illustrators, the Golden Apple of the Bratislava International Biennale of children's book illustration, First Prize for Illustration at the Barcelona International Children's Book Fair, and the Premio Grafico at the Bologna Children's Book Fair. His book Gulliver's Adventures in Lilliput (retold by Ann Keay Beneduce) was chosen one of the Ten Best Illustrated Books of the Year by the New York Times Book Review.

Gennady Spirin came to the United States in 1991 and now lives with his wife and their three sons in Princeton, New Jersey.copyright &py; 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All rights reserved.

Editorial Reviews

Exquisite design and delicately elaborate illustration evoking the finely burnished gilt tradition of classic Russian lacquer ware transport the reader to once-upon-a-time and the faraway kingdom of Tsar Vasilyi. Each night, a fabulous peacock-like bird, with feathers of fiery magnificence, pilfers the fruit of the Tsar's exotic golden-apple tree. Vasilyi covets the bird, and he promises great rewards to the one who can capture and deliver this wondrous creature. This beautifully articulated translation of the traditional tale in which the youngest of three sons must conquer his impulses and complete a royal quest, is rife with verbal and visual motifs that invite the reader to slow down, to scrutinize, and to appreciate every aspect of this story of second chances and of learning from one's mistakes. The conflict between good and evil, between the strengths and weaknesses of human nature, is subtly communicated in the ingenious use of positive and negative space on alternating pages. Visual detail is enhanced by watercolor work so fine, it seems it could only have been wrought with a single hair of the great gray wolf who carries the earnest hero, Ivan-Tsarevitch, soaring over opulent, onion-domed rooftops toward the fulfillment of his promises and the hard-won rewards of a man of honor. Readers will find this version less cumbersome than others in which the Firebird is sometimes bird, sometimes woman, and which often include a much larger cast of characters and distracting, gruesome scenes. Here, the message is illuminated, not obscured, by the medium and the manner in which it is offered. Masterful. (Picture book/folktale. 5-12)

Kirkus Reviews