This striking nonfiction picture book investigates who created ancient wall art that’s been discovered around the world and why—the exact answers may be out of reach, but the investigation is half the fun. Complete with extensive back matter, including a bonus double foldout gatefold, Ancestory is perfect company for pictorial nonfiction by Jason Chin and Candace Fleming.
Around the world, our ancient ancestors’ mysterious art is left behind on cave walls, in rainforests, and with ink made from charcoal and crushed clay. These people told their stories in magnificent drawings that still speak to us today, echoing across generations.
In her own stunning artwork that features the deserts of North America to the caves of Papua New Guinea, Hannah Salyer showcases ancient rock paintings, drawings, and etchings and invites us to add to the ongoing story—our ancestory.
- A winning combo of art and science.
- Curriculum tie-in potential to prehistory, art, anthropology, and geography.
- Stunning artwork and design.
- Robust back matter includes world map with keyed rock art sites, author’s note, info about the Lascaux Caves, glossary, and timeline.
- Read more books by Hannah Salyer such as Packs: Strength in Numbers.
48 pages 978-0358469841 Ages 5-9
Keywords: art, cave art, prehistoric, Fine Arts Curriculum, 5 year old, 6 year old, 7 year old, 8 year old, 9 year old, Social Studies Curriculum
********* Give a child a flat space and the means to make a mark and that is exactly what they will do. And not only will they make marks but there will be a story that goes along with them, one that the child can visualise and tell in greater detail than the marks can depict and the viewer can ascertain.
And from this stunning and intriguing book we learn that such activity is almost instinctual as it traces human history and "the lives, dreams and stories of our ancient ancestors" through the images portrayed in rock art. From the earliest known markings - those of prehistoric man discovered in the Biombos Cave, South Africa - these time capsules demonstrate the vital information and connections made between peoples around the globe who, despite the difficulties and dangers they faced daily still took the time to create, even though each etching might have taken many days and many people to complete. From the making of tools to make a mark to the choice of medium to use as an enduring pigment, the effort to create these becomes apparent and underlines their historic importance, with a strong message of why they need to be both appreciated and preserved.
With its clever title, Ancestory takes the reader on a short journey of a long period showing how the creation of pictorial works is an integral part of who we are, and then, in the final pages, offers more detailed insight including links to more information for those who want to know more, making this a book that spans not only its topic but also age groups and the curriculum. While young readers are often fascinated by the lives of the "cavemen", older visual arts students can also discover much that will satisfy the upper bands of the Australian Curriculum.
Fascinating.
Recommended by: Barbara Braxton, Teacher Librarian, New South Wales AUSTRALIA
See more of her recommendations:
Together, we learn from each other
500 Hats http://500hats.edublogs.org/
The Bottom Shelf http://thebottomshelf.edublogs.org/
