It's here at last!
A picture book about the first woman filmmaker, suitable for children from Kindergarden to third grade. Library School Journal has given it a starred review and said "Subtly STEM, fun, and beautiful to look at... encourages kids to engage with cutting-edge technology and to innovate in new fields."
That's high praise for a picture book, but it hardly conveys the flow and beauty of Lights! Camera! Alice! Author Mara Rockliff has taken the events from Alice's Memoirs and brought them to life with a humorous and moving narration. Illustrator Simona Ciraolo has illustrated the story with a warm, lively art style, some of the images based on stills from Alice's films or film publicity.
A picture book is too short for such a long eventful life, but Rockliff and Ciraolo have divided the book into sections (each section entitled with one of Alice's film title) that gives the appropriate highlights for a child. The section titles are framed with decorative motifs reminiscent of those used in silent film intertitles.
This is a beautiful and inspiring book that should be part of every kid's pile of presents this coming holiday season.
WHERE TO FIND IT
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Mara Rockliff is the author of many lively historical books for children, including Around America to Win the Vote: Two Suffragists, a Kitten, and 10,000 Miles and Anything but Ordinary Addie: The True Story of Adelaide Herrmann, Queen of Magic, as well as Mesmerized: How Ben Franklin Solved a Mystery that Baffled All of France, winner of the Cook Prize and an Orbis Pictus Honor book.
Previous picture books include Gingerbread for Liberty!, The Grudge Keeper, Chik Chak Shabbat and Me and Momma and Big John, winner of the Golden Kite Award. Under the pen name Lewis B. Montgomery, she wrote all twelve books in the popular Milo & Jazz Mysteries chapter book series. Rockliff is also the author of Get Real: What Kind of World Are You Buying?, a tween-friendly guide to the social and environmental impact of our shopping choices, which has become required reading in middle schools across the United States and around the world.
Rockliff's public speaking experience includes TV and radio as well as bookstores, libraries, schools, children's museums, writing workshops, book festivals, and state and regional conferences for teachers and librarians. She lives in eastern Pennsylvania with her family. You can read about other books she's written here.
Simona Giraolo is a children's book author and illustrator. She grew up in Italy where she received a degree in animation from the National Film School. She has also earned an MA in children's book illustration in Cambridge. She lives in London. You can read about other books she's illustrated here.