~ MMGM ART BIOGRAPHY TWO BROTHERS, FOUR HANDS ~

~ MARVELOUS MIDDLE-GRADE

MONDAY ARTISTS BIOGRAPHY ~

--  'TWO BROTHERS, FOUR HANDS:

THE ARTISTS ALBERTO AND DIEGO

GIACOMETTI'  --

AUTHORS JAN GREENBERG -and-

SANDRA JORDAN

ILLUSTRATOR HADLEY HOOPER

LEARN MORE ON GOODREADS

ABOUT THE BOOK {from Goodreads}:

The inspiring true story of the Giacometti brothers, one an artist, the other a daredevil, both devoted to their craft . . . but even more devoted to each other.

Everyone who knew them agreed. Alberto was the genius of the family. His younger brother Diego was his opposite--he didn't care much for books or schoolwork, and he had no idea what he would be when he grew up. But despite their differences, the two brothers shared an intense bond.

Alberto Giacometti became one of the iconic artists of the twentieth century, whose tall, spindly sculptures grace the collections of museums around the world. Diego was always at his side, helping and encouraging, and in his spare time creating remarkable pieces of furniture, works of sculpture in their own right.

The poignant story of brothers and sculptors Alberto and Diego Giacometti is skillfully brought to life in the hands of multiple Sibert Honor authors Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan, and the spectacular artwork of Hadley Hooper.

This lavishly illustrated 64-page book includes extensive back matter, complete with a timeline, source notes, photographs, and an essay on how to look at a Giacometti sculpture.

MY THOUGHTS:

I'm going to be transparent here -- I had never heard of the artists Alberto and/or Diego Giacometti before I picked up this book off of the 'new non-fiction book' shelf at the local public library. But, as you may have noticed recently, I can't resist a good biography about the arts.

These interesting brothers were born thirteen months apart in 1901 and 1902 in Switzerland. Their father, Giovanni Giacometti, was a talented painter in his own right. When the boys were young, he gave them pencils and paper.

Right away Alberto showed promise as an artist. He was interested in drawing and reading and was a quiet, serious child. Diego was a complete opposite. He loved being out exploring nature, and climbing the hillsides. He was known as a dare-devil. The two brothers were extremely close, and Diego idolizes Alberto. In fact, Diego does his brother's chores so Alberto can do what Alberto likes to do.

The book follows their lives as individuals and as brothers from childhood until death. It includes some traumatic events such as the invasion of Paris during the summer of 1940 by the German troops, poverty, food insecurity and hunger, and frustration/depression about rejection of their creations from the public and gallery owners. 

The authors have not sugar-coated the situations in which the Giacometti brothers find themselves. Devotion, loyalty, teamwork, and perseverance are the major themes of this book which is filled with a multitude of 'teachable moments' for children and adults alike.

The back matter includes an Analysis of one of Alberto's most famous works of art, a sculpture entitled Walking Man; a Timeline;
a photo gallery of pieces of art made by the father and the brothers, respectively; Notes on the Text; and a Bibliography.

**Highly-recommended to fans of art history, Surrealism, modern art, twentieth-century history, European history, family sagas, and World War II history.**

 →➤ My favorite fact shared in the book is that Bruno Giacometti, Diego and Alberto's younger brother, was a famous Swiss architect who lived to be 105 years old!

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Learn about more great middle-grade reads by visiting Greg Pattridge's 'Always in the Middle' blog to find the links to other blog posts celebrating Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday!

 

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