The Book of Gold
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
Award-winning illustrator Bob Staake (Bluebird and The Red Lemon) brings us an emotionally rich picture book about a boy who discovers that the search for knowledge is more important than knowledge itself.
Young Isaac Gutenberg isn't a curious boy . . . that is, until he meets an old shopkeeper who tells him about The Book of Gold. This special book, hidden somewhere in the world, holds all the answers to every question and turns to solid gold when opened.
Isaac is determined to find the book—it will make him rich! He opens many books in his search, but quickly closes them when they don't turn to gold. That changes one day when he opens a book, looks at the page, and a question pops into his mind. From then on, he reads every word.
Time passes and Isaac ages, but he still scours dusty attics and flea markets, crisscrossing the world, searching for The Book of Gold. This sweeping picture book asks important questions: Is searching for knowledge better than having it? How important is curiosity? And what makes a life meaningful?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Isaac Gutenberg's parents want him to read, so they bring their disinterested son to the New York Public Library. He's unimpressed. Later that day, an elderly shopkeeper tells him about a book that turns to gold when it's opened: "You'll need patience and fortitude to find The Book of Gold!" Isaac sets out in a frenzy to find the precious book and get rich, but his search slows as he discovers that the books he's tossing aside can answer all sorts of questions. Staake (Beachy and Me) places Isaac in a series of magnificent architectural spaces teeming with detail, including many inside and outside the famous library (whose two lions, Isaac eventually discovers, are called Patience and Fortitude). Sepia-toned illustrations reflect the book's initial 1930s setting, giving way to color as Isaac awakens to the potential of books over the course of many decades. The pitch for reading is a little heavy-handed, and the information Isaac finds ("He learned who invented pizza. He saw diagrams showing how heavy ships could float") isn't supplied readers will have to seek out those answers themselves. Ages 4 8.)
