ABOUT THE BOOK
Else B. in the Sea: The Woman Who Painted the Wonders of the Deep
Written by Jeanne Walker Harvey
Illustrated by Melodie Stacey
Ages 5-7 | 32 Pages
Publisher: Cameron Kids/ Abrams Books | ISBN-13: 9781949480283
Publisher’s Book Summary: A poetic picture book biography about a daring and pioneering woman artist that combines themes of art and science. A perfect STEAM book!
Else Bostelmann donned a red swimsuit and a copper diving helmet and, with paints and brushes in hand, descended into the choppy turquoise sea off the coast of Bermuda. It was 1930, and few had ventured deep into the sea before. She discovered a fairyland six fathoms below the surface—fantastic coral castles, glittering sunbeams, swaying sea plumes, and slender purple sea fans. And fish! Flashy silverfish, puckering blue parrotfish, iridescent jellyfish. Else painted under the sea! She painted what she saw with her own eyes.
Back on land, Else painted the never-before-seen deep-sea creatures described by world-renowned scientist William Beebe on his momentous 1930s bathysphere expeditions for the New York Zoological Society’s Department of Tropical Research. It was a daring and glamorous adventure and a dream come true for Else B., who shared this new, unfathomable world with humankind.
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MY REVIEW
This delightful picture book biography of Else Bostelmann portrays her dedication to creating the most faithful and accurate images of deep-sea life possible. Readers see her climbing down the ladder from the boat and donning the enormous diving helmet that supplied her with air. She almost seems to be another colorful tropical fish in her red swimsuit. Although she was only a few fathoms below the surface (unlike Beebe’s much deeper journeys), she was able to observe how the perception of colors shifted as one traveled deeper and deeper from the ocean’s surface. This helped her create lifelike illustrations of the creatures that Beebe observed and described.
The text describes the determination and ingenuity of Else. Since she wouldn’t be in the bathysphere, she found a way to experience the underwater environment that was within her reach by using a diving helmet. She also invented ways to paint underwater so that she could capture the shapes and colors of sea life. Back on dry land she took the time to study creatures “trawled from the depths” to see their shimmer and glow before it faded and also observed their anatomy under a microscope. The illustrations capture the “magical fairyland” of coral reefs, sea fans, and “blue, shadowy silhouettes.” When the story reaches the point that Else is creating the paintings to be used in National Geographic, the images faithfully reproduce her style. There is a stunning double-page spread with fifteen different fish shown and labeled against an inky background. Endpapers show a map of the area around Bermuda and Nonsuch Island where Else and Beebe did their work. Back matter includes an author’s note with more details about Else and her work, a photo of Else at her desk with her microscope, and two of the images she painted. There are also explanations of bioluminescence, the underwater color spectrum, and how to convert fathoms to feet or meters. A list of selected sources is included. This is a great STEAM title. I would pair this with Secrets of the Sea: The Story of Jeanne Power, Revolutionary Marine Scientist or Otis and Will Discover the Deep: The Record-Setting Dive of the Bathysphere to give young readers more insight into oceanic exploration.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jeanne Walker Harvey is the author of many award-winning picture books, including Boats on the Bay, as well as the well-received picture book biographies Ablaze with Color: A Story of Painter Alma Thomas and Maya Lin: Artist-Architect of Light and Lines. She lives in Sonoma, California.
For more information, visit https://www.jeanneharvey.com
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ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
Melodie Stacey is a fine artist and illustrator whose work can be found in the picture book Beautiful Useful Things. She lives in Brighton, United Kingdom.
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