Letters

A publisher defends a picture book's time frame

Kathy Krasniewicz's review of Connie Ann Kirk's Sky Dancers (Lee & Low, 2004; Jan 2005, p. 94) states "…the presence of city bridges that were not completed until several months after the Empire State Building is confusing." This statement is inaccurate. The story takes place in the early 1930s. I have spoken with the illustrator about the research she conducted for the book. She states: "The George Washington Bridge, pictured distantly in the Hudson River scene, opened for traffic in 1931, but the construction started in 1927, so it was near completion at the time of our character's journey down the Hudson. Lewis W. Hine documented the construction of the Empire State Building from 1930 to 1931. There are pictures of workers near the top with the view of the Chrysler building and Triborough Bridge over the East River in the background."

Although the Triborough Bridge was completed in 1936, construction began in 1929; so much of the structure was in place by the early 1930s, which is confirmed by Hine's photographs. In one of the illustrations, the Hell's Gate Bridge is pictured, which a quick Web search confirms was completed in 1916.

The reviewer also states: "Slight slips in grammar… (Papa sometimes favors Cesar Chavez, for example…)" is clearly not true. Papa's speech reflects word usage and dialect appropriate for Native Americans at the time, which may not be strictly correct grammatically. This is perfectly acceptable, even preferred, in order to create a sense of time and place in fictional stories.

Lee & Low Books takes pride in publishing authentic stories, and we feel that sharing this information with the readers of School Library Journal would be helpful.

Jason Low, Publisher
Lee & Low Books, New York, NY

I agree completely with Mr. Low that the chronology he provided as a defense of Sky Dancers will be helpful to readers of School Library Journal; perhaps the inclusion of this information via a note or simple time line in the book itself might have been appropriate. In its absence, I suggest that Mr. Low and I will have to agree to disagree in regard to the possibility that readers, and particularly young readers, may come away from Sky Dancers with the misimpression that the George Washington and other bridges pictured were completed (and/or open) prior to the completion of the Empire State Building.

I can see that Mr. Low mistook my observation about Mohawk Indian Papa favoring Cesar Chavez to refer to dialogue—and I apologize if I was unclear. My intent was to say that, while the renderings of Papa's face are most times more impressionistic than distinct, he sometimes, and especially in the detailed painting toward the end of the story, bears a strong resemblance to Mr. Chavez.

Kathy Krasniewicz
Youth Services Librarian
Perrot Library, Old Greenwich, CT

Two of the books reviewed in our November 2004 issue listed incorrect distributors. Jeff Szpirglas's Gross Universe: Your Guide to All Disgusting Things under the Sun (p. 132) and Keltie Thomas's How Baseball Works (p. 174) were both published by Maple Tree and distributed by Firefly.

An editorial error in the review of Roddy Doyle's The Meanwhile Adventures (Scholastic, 2004; Dec., p. 106) resulted in an inaccurate description of the characters. The correct word is "puckish" and we apologize for any confusion that may have been caused.

In our November 2004 issue, David V. Loertscher is identified incorrectly as a past president of the American Library Association (ALA). Instead, Loertscher is a past president of the American Association of School Librarians, a division of ALA.