The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky's Abstract Art by Rosenstock, Barb

A Caldecott Honor Book

Vasya Kandinsky was a proper little boy: he studied math and history, he practiced the piano, he sat up straight and was perfectly polite. And when his family sent him to art classes, they expected him to paint pretty houses and flowers--like a proper artist.

But as Vasya opened his paint box and began mixing the reds, the yellows, the blues, he heard a strange sound--the swirling colors trilled like an orchestra tuning up for a symphony And as he grew older, he continued to hear brilliant colors singing and see vibrant sounds dancing. But was Vasya brave enough to put aside his proper still lifes and portraits and paint . . . music?

In this exuberant celebration of creativity, Barb Rosenstock and Mary GrandPr tell the fascinating story of Vasily Kandinsky, one of the very first painters of abstract art. Throughout his life, Kandinsky experienced colors as sounds, and sounds as colors--and bold, groundbreaking works burst forth from his noisy paint box.

Backmatter includes four paintings by Kandinsky, an author's note, sources, links to websites on synesthesia and abstract art.

Author: Barb Rosenstock
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Published: 02/11/2014
Pages: 40
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.00lbs
Size: 11.30h x 9.00w x 0.30d
ISBN: 9780307978486
Audience: Ages 4-8

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 4.4
Point Value: 0.5
Interest Level: Lower Grade
Quiz #/Name: 164284 / Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky's Abstract Art


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 11/11/2013
Kirkus Reviews 12/01/2013
Horn Book Magazine 01/01/2014 pg. 116
Booklist 01/01/2014 pg. 98
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 02/01/2014
School Library Journal 02/01/2014 pg. 122
Kirkus Best Picture Books 11/15/2014 pg. 70
PW Children's Starred Reviews 12/01/2014 pg. 56
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2014 - Superior,Well Above Average

About the Author
BARB ROSENSTOCK is the author of The Camping Trip that Changed America, illustrated by Mordecai Gerstein, and Fearless: The Story of Racing Legend Louise Smith, illustrated by Scott Dawson. She lives outside of Chicago with her husband, sons, and two big poodles.

MARY GRANDPRÉ is best known as the illustrator of the Harry Potter books. She also illustrated The Blue Shoe by Roderick Townley and the picture books The Carnival of the Animals written by Jack Prelutsky and Chin Yu Min and the Ginger Cat by Jennifer Armstrong.