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Summary
Summary
This winning heroine will inspire every child to cheer her on as she ventures through a bitter cold snowstorm in William Steig's classic Brave Irene.
Brave Irene is Irene Bobbin, the dressmaker's daughter. Her mother, Mrs. Bobbin, isn't feeling so well and can't possibly deliver the beautiful ball gown she's made for the duchess to wear that very evening. So plucky Irene volunteers to get the gown to the palace on time, in spite of the fierce snowstorm that's brewing-- quite an errand for a little girl.
But where there's a will, there's a way, as Irene proves in the danger-fraught adventure that follows. She must defy the wiles of the wicked wind, her most formidable opponent, and overcome many obstacles before she completes her mission.
Brave Irene is a 1986 New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year.
Adapted into a short film in 1989 from director Daniel Ivanick.
Author Notes
William Steig was born in Brooklyn, New York, on November 14, 1907, and spent his childhood in the Bronx. Steig found an outlet for his talent by creating cartoons for the high school newspaper. After high school graduation, Steig spent two years at City College, three years at the National Academy, and five days at the Yale School of Fine Arts before dropping out.
During his early days as a free-lance artist, he supplemented his income with work in advertising, although he intensely disliked it. He illustrated for the The New Yorker, beginning in 1930. During the 1940s, Steig's creativity found a more agreeable outlet when he began carving figurines in wood; his sculptures are on display as part of the collection in the historic home of Franklin D. Roosevelt in Hyde Park, New York, and in several museums in New England. In 1967, Bob Kraus, a fellow cartoonist at The New Yorker, was in the process of organizing Windmill Books, an imprint for Harper & Row. Kraus suggested that Steig try writing and illustrating a book for a young audience. The result was Steig's letter-puzzle book entitled C D B!, published in 1968.
Roland the Minstrel Pig, was published the same year. With his very next title, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, he won the Caldecott Medal. The Amazing Bone was also a Caldecott Honor Book.In 1972, Steig published his first children's novel, Dominic, which won the Christopher Award. Abel's Island followed and was a Newberry Honor Book.
William Steig died in October 3, 2003 in Boston Massachusettes.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (1)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-4 Fans will enjoy this typical Steig myth, although it lacks the surprise and logic of his best stories. It isn't a fit night out for man nor beast when Irene pluckily forges on through wind and snow to deliver the ball gown that her ill mother has stitched for the duchess. The dramatic pictures of brave Irene's painful journey will engage children's sympathy, but children will also wonder why the dressmaker's child didn't stay home with her sick mother, however grateful the duchess was. The magic just isn't here. Anna Biagioni Hart, Sherwood Regional Library, Alexandria, Va. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.