A Life Made by Hand: The Story of Ruth Asawa

"D’Aquino offers young readers “the story of an artist you may have never heard of": Ruth Asawa (1926-2013), a Japanese American creator of nature-inspired wire sculptures. A third-person text effectively uses occasional imagined quota­tions from young Ruth to convey the sense of curiosity and wonder at the natural world that would later define this artist. Throughout the narrative, there’s also an emphasis on the handmade-from a childhood spent on a farm to her studies at Black Mountain College to learning basket-weaving from a local craftsperson in Mexico, which would inspire her woven-wire…

"D’Aquino showcases how Asawa’s curiosity and handiwork, set amidst charcoal and colored-pencil drawings and mixed-paper collages, carried her into adulthood, where her creative talent began to receive praise and attention. Through this picture-book contribution, not only will Asawa’s art reach a new audience, but her artistic practice will inspire the next generation of creative minds to express themselves with handmade art. A worthwhile addition to picture-book collections everywhere."

"Asawa never attained the kind of name recognition accorded woman sculptors like Louise Nevelson and Louise Bourgeois. Happily, a clutch of recent books should help burnish her reputation and explain why her innovations have not received greater acknowledgment among historians and curators."

"D’Aquino’s illustrations utilize charcoal, colored pencil, and collage with beautiful muted colors and whimsical designs. D’Aquino also includes illustrated instructions on how to create a paper dragonfly, a great activity for storytime."

"This introduction to the life of the Japanese-American artist Ruth Asawa (1926-2013) follows her early life growing up on a farm, her time at the legendary Black Mountain College, and the trip to Mexico where she learned to weave with wire. Colorful textural collage illustrations convey the way her creative practice was informed by the world around her. Instructions for a paper dragonfly close the book, encouraging readers to emulate this teacher, who “knew that the best way to learn is to use your hands.”

"At once whimsical and subdued, charcoal, colored pencil, and collage art captures the wonder of her innovative wire sculptures."

"I was struck by how beautifully D'Aquino's renderings capture the spirit of Asawa's work."

"Through this picture-book contribution, not only will Asawa's art reach a new audience, but her artistic practice will inspire the next generation of creative minds to express themselves with handmade art. A worthwhile addition to picture-book collections everywhere."