For 40 years, a large block of marble sat undisturbed in a work yard in Florence, Italy. The long-held plan was to have a sculpture of David overlooking the cathedral, and so, encouraged by friends, young Michelangelo returned to his hometown to tackle the project. Building a wooden hut around the stone for privacy, he set to work, first sketching David on the stone and then chiseling bit by bit. For three years he chiseled, until finally the 18-foot statue was finished. Sutcliffe's fascinating story of Michelangelo's David is appropriate for younger readers, and Shelley's detailed pen-and-ink illustrations will be appreciated even by older readers. (Before you ask, yes, the sculpture is depicted in all its nude glory.) In a style reminiscent of Peter Sís or Tomie de Paola, Sutcliffe and Shelley often expand the text by having a full-page drawing with a storyboard strip along the top, while other times they use circular illustrations with borders. Art teachers especially would do well to seek this out.

Young Michelangelo "saw David--his David" inside a huge block of marble that had troubled Florence's artists for decades. The illustrations' cartoonish aspects--a worn-out Michelangelo chipping away; townspeople positioned like a Greek chorus speculating on his progress--complement the lighthearted text, which only turns serious as Sutcliffe describes the completed David's beauty and grandeur. Appended with an informative author's note. Bib.

Sutcliffe make a big impression with this eye-catching introduction to one of Western civilization's most iconic sculptures. When the young artist was summoned from Rome back to his native Florence, he was commissioned to take on a work of heroic proportions. This sculpture of the Old Testament hero David was to symbolize Florentine strength and civic virtue. Michelangelo requested "the giant"—an immense block of creamy marble that had been languishing for over 40 years. Sutcliffe limns the lively details of this multiyear project, and her tale of Michelangelo's talent and industry is considerably enhanced by the thoughtful pen, ink and watercolor work of British illustrator Shelley. He makes the finely modeled realism of the statue the real standout here. (Yes, there are a few views of David in full frontal splendor.) Shelley wondrously juxtaposes this cool, nuanced marble hero with a crowded city, brimming with the bright colors and lively action of Renaissance book illuminations. Backmatter includes an author's note and a brief bibliography (mostly adult titles, no online resources). Sadly missing? An artist's note to help curious readers place all the highly researched imagery and background in more complete artistic, historic and geographic context. Still, this is a handsome offering that helps youngsters understand both an artist's process and how this stunning statue became the enduring symbol of a city and its people. (Informational picture book. 6-10)

Gr 3-5 A Renaissance icon and one of the most towering (in more ways than one) of Western civilization's artworks gets a humorous but respectful, down-to-earth, and easy-to-understand treatment. Readers learn that the city fathers always intended to have a statue of David carved, as a symbol of the small but powerful city, but that their plan wasn't so simple. Many earlier attempts had come to naught, with even Leonardo da Vinci passing on the idea. Fortunately for Florence-and posterity-Michelangelo was persuaded to return from Rome and began his painstaking sculpting, bringing forth his giant almost three years later, in 1504. This well-written, lively account is graced with excellent illustrations, rendered in pen-and-ink and painted with watercolors, that truly convey a Renaissance Italian flavor; there's even an image of Michelangelo's sketches for the statue with a poem he wrote about it. Readers should note that David 's frontal nudity is discreetly concealed for the most part, but there is one scene in which the piece is shown from the front, completely uncovered, and another illustration depicts the statue's bare backside. A helpful author's note and bibliography conclude the book, though the note fails to reveal that David is now housed in the Accademia Gallery in Florence, and the bibliography includes mostly outdated resources and none that seem geared to young readers. Highly recommended for all public and school libraries and especially recommended for units on the Italian Renaissance and in art classes in the middle to upper-elementary grades. Carol Goldman, Queens Library, NY