Graven Images

Paul Fleischman, in his Newbery Honor winning book, spins three engrossing stories about the unexpected ways an artist's creations reveal truths - tales whose intriguing plots and many moods will entertain readers and inspire future writers.Can wood, copper, or marble communicate? They can if they are the graven images in Newbery Medalist Paul Fleischman’s trio of eerie, beguiling short stories. If you whisper a secret into a wooden statue’s ear, will anyone find out? Can a wobbly weathervane bearing the image of Saint Crispin, the patron saint of shoemakers, steer a love-struck apprentice toward the girl of his dreams? And if a ghost hires a sculptor to carve a likeness of him holding a drink to a baby’s lips, what ghastly crime might lie behind his request? And, in a brand-new afterword, the acclaimed storyteller reveals how he found his own author’s voice.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8–Three tales of the supernatural are rejuvenated in this spellbinding performance of Newbery Medalist Paul Fleischman's 1982 novel that is now back in print (Candlewick, 2006). The voices of actors Paul Michael, Susan Denaker, and Lincoln Hoppe provide a cushioning effect for these eerie stories about the secret lives of statues. Hoppe nails the youthful voice of a love-struck boy in Saint Crispin's Follower, and Denaker's narration of The Binnacle Boy gently introduces listeners to the hidden knowledge of a shipboard statue. Michael has an uncanny ability to dramatically change his voice and switch easily between accents. He presents an especially compelling performance as a sculptor and his model in the final story, The Man of Influence. The rich and mysterious lives of graven images are detailed further in the production's closing remarks as Fleischman divulges what inspired him to write his short stories. Older readers who have moved beyond Alvin Schwartz's Scary Stories will find more than enough spooky thrills in this fascinating audio production.–Celeste Steward, Alameda County Library, Fremont, CA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From the Publisher

Paul Fleischman spins three engrossing stories about the unexpected ways an artist’s creations reveal truths – tales whose intriguing plots and many moods will entertain readers and inspire future writers.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

"A pox on the stars!" continued the voice. "Too bright for my liking. Aye, blinding, they are!"Zorelli studied the speaker in wonder. He was short-legged and burly and missing an ear. Fitfully, he glowed and dimmed, as if he were made of starlight himself."You're Zorelli, the stone carver, if I'm not mistaken." His clothes were ragged and glimmered like their wearer, as if they were the dying embers of their former selves."And who - or what - are you?" asked Zorelli."What am I?" The apparition snorted. "Why, a ghost! What else did you take me for?"Zorelli stared at the spirit in awe, his hands fluttering like moths. He wondered where Angelina had gone, and had he not been trapped at the end of the wharf he would gladly have fled as well."And what brings you - here?" the sculptor stammered."What brings me here," said the specter, "is you."______GRAVEN IMAGES by Paul Fleischman. Copyright (c) 2006 by Paul Fleischman. Published by Candlewick Press, Inc., Cambridge, MA.

From AudioFile

Three short stories revolve around a quirky theme: the role of a statue in delivering a person's inevitable reckoning. The first and last stories are dark and even a bit spooky, describing the wooden statue that survived a mysterious shipboard disaster and a desperate Italian marble sculptor who takes on a questionable assignment. In contrast, the middle story, which incorporates a weathervane, enjoys more whimsy. A different narrator for each story provides suitable separation and diversity in the compilation. The author's brief afterward explains his inspiration and provides insight for young aspiring writers but would have been more meaningful if read by the author. N.E.M. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

About the Author

PAUL FLEISCHMAN received a Newbery Honor for GRAVEN IMAGES, then went on to win the Newbery Medal for JOYFUL NOISE: POEMS FOR TWO VOICES. Since then, he has crafted an ever more innovative library of books, including ZAP, a play for high school students mixing seven plays in one, and the horror novel parody A FATE TOTALLY WORSE THAN DEATH. Paul Fleischman is currently working on an updated edition of DATELINE: TROY.

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