Starred Review ALA Booklist (Wed May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

Starred Review Part picture-book memoir and part informational text, this fanciful ode to the creative process and the colorful courtship practices of bowerbirds will delight budding artists and bird-lovers alike. Roth narrates the ways in which she and the bird, native to Australia and New Guinea, are similar. They both collect "unusual, often unrelated stuff" to attract a mate, and she to illustrate her stories. However, this lyrical meditation is more than just a compare-and-contrast exercise. The author-illustrator dives deep into how and why she makes her crafting decisions, presenting the artist's process as a fluid endeavor, equal parts cerebral and mechanical. The jewel-toned and textured collage illustrations, filled with paper cuttings as well as found objects, further demonstrate the complexity and ingenuity that each masterpiece entails. Roth and a feathered friend are featured side by side throughout the vibrant pages, and readers will want to jump in alongside them. Detailed back matter provides a fascinating list of bowerbird facts, defines uncommon words, and gives children more insight into Roth's craft. This gem of a book aptly concludes with a bibliography and a photo of the blue bird in the wild, putting the finishing touches on a bower collage. A refreshing take on bird books that will inspire ornithophiles as well as aspiring makers.

Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews

Meet fellow artists Roth and her avian counterpart, the bowerbird.Blending memoir and nonfiction with deep ruminations on what constitutes an artist, Roth presents parallels between her life as an illustrator and the life of an Australian bowerbird. The bowerbird uses both colorful natural materials and "manufactured junk" to elaborately decorate a bower to entice a mate, which Roth presents as a kind of bird "artist's studio." It's heady stuff, and those looking for straight nonfiction should look elsewhere, as most of the factual information on bowerbirds appears in the backmatter. Those willing to follow the metaphor will marvel at the similarities between the two as Roth deftly depicts the bird creating his bower while she metafictively creates this book. Bold, decisively cut collages capture the artists at work, highlighting their shared tools, their uses of artistic principles like space and color, and their equal penchant for collecting "unusual objects of manageable size." Bird and human are further connected by the black bird's lush feathers and the white woman's feathery gray hair. Occasionally, the profusion of stuff feels dizzying, and sometimes comparisons feel lofty—"We each try hard to give our delicate compositions some solidity"—but introspective readers will be satisfied by the reflective nature of the text and the behind-the-scenes look at dual artistic processes.Roth persuasively argues that "all artists…seek praise," and this ambitious hybrid demands to be seen. (bibliography) (Picture book/memoir. 4-8)

School Library Journal Starred Review (Wed May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

Gr 2-4 What do award-winning, children's book author-illustrator Roth and bowerbirds have in common? As Roth explains in this charming informational picture book, both bowerbirds (native to Australia and New Guinea) and she (a resident of Queens, NY) scavenge colorful, bright, shiny objects from nature and the world around them. However, their purposes are different. With her fascinating finds, Roth fashions eye-popping collages to make books; male bowerbirds build elaborately decorated, leafy structures (not nests) to attract mates. On facing spreads throughout, Roth demonstrates how she and her avian counterparts locate and arrange their respective collections to create meticulous, eye-catching "unexpected compositions." Children will be amused that both human and feathered artists use "tools" similarly: the bowerbird's beak "operates like tweezers" and "his feet are like my hands." Roth's writing is simple, direct, and inspirational. Students will gain a clear idea of how much can be learned by watching birds utilize odd bits to optimal creative advantage. The book's collages fly off the pages with color and energy, and the strands of Roth's artfully disheveled hair even resemble feathers. Enhancing the title's usefulness are the author's notes in the back matter about bowerbirds, and their and her own work methods. VERDICT Recommended for public and school collections. This vibrant book will work well as a read-aloud in a group setting and as a springboard/introduction for creative-thinking and creative-art sessions. Carol Goldman, formerly at Queens Library, NY

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

Meet fellow artists Roth and her avian counterpart, the bowerbird.Blending memoir and nonfiction with deep ruminations on what constitutes an artist, Roth presents parallels between her life as an illustrator and the life of an Australian bowerbird. The bowerbird uses both colorful natural materials and "manufactured junk" to elaborately decorate a bower to entice a mate, which Roth presents as a kind of bird "artist's studio." It's heady stuff, and those looking for straight nonfiction should look elsewhere, as most of the factual information on bowerbirds appears in the backmatter. Those willing to follow the metaphor will marvel at the similarities between the two as Roth deftly depicts the bird creating his bower while she metafictively creates this book. Bold, decisively cut collages capture the artists at work, highlighting their shared tools, their uses of artistic principles like space and color, and their equal penchant for collecting "unusual objects of manageable size." Bird and human are further connected by the black bird's lush feathers and the white woman's feathery gray hair. Occasionally, the profusion of stuff feels dizzying, and sometimes comparisons feel lofty—"We each try hard to give our delicate compositions some solidity"—but introspective readers will be satisfied by the reflective nature of the text and the behind-the-scenes look at dual artistic processes.Roth persuasively argues that "all artists…seek praise," and this ambitious hybrid demands to be seen. (bibliography) (Picture book/memoir. 4-8)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

What do a bowerbird and an artist have in common? More than one might think. In this cheerfully offbeat tale, Roth compares her work as a collage artist to the magpie creativity of male bowerbirds, who build elaborate shelters adorned with a variety of found objects to attract mates. Listing their many similarities--we are both collectors of unusual, often unrelated stuff-; -we both are dependent upon nature and on manufactured junk for our art supplies--she gives young readers an honest look at the creative process that slyly undermines the notion that vaunted human activities are unique. Rich cut-paper collages studded with gems, sparkly pipe cleaners, feathers, and paper ephemera depict artist and bird at work. Endnotes delve further into facts about bowerbirds and their similarities to the artist, and present an eclectic bibliography alongside a photo of a blue-eyed bowerbird and his bottle cap-bedecked creation. Ages 4-8. (May)