Leonard Everett Fisher (1924–2024)

Author/illustrator Leonard Everett Fisher, who has retold many myths and folktales for children in his long career, here presents the legend of William Tell, the Swiss folk hero celebrated for shooting an apple off of his own son's head. Opening in 1307, when Gessler, the brutal Austrian governor of the Swiss town of Altdorf, made the townsfolk bow to his hat, the story follows Tell's refusal to obey, and the punishment meted out to him. After the famous incident in which Tell succeeds in show more shooting the apple, the book concludes with a brief summary of his adventures thereafter: from escaping imprisonment, by jumping out of a boat carrying him to the prison, to slaying Gessler, thereby freeing the area...

Although I am familiar with his work, William Tell is the first of Fisher's books that I have picked up. I was prompted to do so by my recent reading of Margaret Early's William Tell, which offers another picture-book retelling of the legend, as I wanted to compare that book to other versions. On the whole, I prefer Early's version, which draws in far more of the history - the Rütlischwur, and the foundation of the Old Swiss Confederacy - and feels more authentic to me. I do appreciate Fisher's telling however, and his somewhat dark-toned, but beautiful illustrations. I particularly liked his use of color here, and found his human faces expressive, if a little bit odd at times. Although not my favorite, this is still a solid retelling of the legend, and is one I would recommend to young folklore lovers, and to anyone looking for stories about William Tell for the picture-book set. show less

The illustrations are large and plain and colorful. They are somewhat influenced by the Ancient Egyptian canon, with faces in profile and bodies from the front in many cases. There's a map on the end pages. Fine for children, probably good to read aloud.The bibliography at the back is not suggested reading; those books are written for adults in all cases. I'm not sure why Osiris is blue on the front cover; he's green on his own page, which is how he was often depicted in Ancient Egyptian show more paintings, symbolizing as he did rebirth and green, growing things. show less

This books seems to have solid intentions, but I found it uneven in its presentation. It reads like a narrative essay not so much run amok, but a bit too pedestrian. With all the books out in the world on this topic, this one didn't have to be published. Of course, it can serve as a primer on the subject, and surely, there are other, less successful efforts, but I can't really recommend taking the time read this unless to serve as a point of comparison with other, sturdier publications.

I think Fisher's title would have been only slightly more accurate if he had added the word quotations to "with photographs, maps, and drawings" because that's all that was missing. In addition to an informative narrative and the before mentioned photos, maps, and drawings Fisher includes fitting quotes from Charles Dickens, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Woodrow Wilson as well as song lyrics and poetry. While Tracks Across America is a condensed version of the story of the American railroad show more Fisher makes an effort to include all aspects of the history including before the railroads, the building period, the Civil War, Native American "resistance" (really hard to read), famous robberies and disasters, and progress with bigger and faster engines. show less