Gr. 4-8. Another fine entry in the innovative Adventures in Art series, this title uses Chagall's biographical paintings to introduce his life story and work. In the opening scenes, Chagall's images of his childhood town illustrate stories about the artist's early years: a picture of an evening inside a synagogue accompanies text about his Jewish education. On the following pages, blocks and fanciful ribbons of text describe the details in Chagall's deeply religious pieces, citing both the biblical scriptures and events in the artist's life that relate to the images, ending appropriately in a description of the glorious painting Life. A straightforward one-page biography appears at the book's conclusion, along with citations for all the artworks, inconveniently printed on the end-papers. Readers will come away with both a sketch of the artist's life and a deeper appreciation for visual art's capacity to tell stories. Gillian Engberg
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