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Bibliographic Citation
Title: Me…Jane
Author/Illustrator: Patrick McDonnell
Year of Publication: 2011
Publisher City: New York
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
ISBN: 9780316045469
Author/Illustrator Website: http://muttscomics.com/
Media Used for Artwork: Ink, Watercolor
Copyright 2010/2011
My Top 10 Favorite Picturebooks for Older Readers
Awards
· Hicklebee’s Book of the Year, 2011
Annotation
A fictitious story of Jane Goodall’s life as a child and how even from a young age she dreamed of travelling to Africa and helping animals, with the help of her stuffed toy chimpanzee, Jubilee.
Personal Reaction
In the author’s notes it is stated that when Goodall was 10-years-old she decided that she wanted to go to Africa. At such a young age she had a dream that she later fulfilled when she did travel to Africa observed chimpanzees. Because of this she was able to make discoveries about these animals that no other experts had seen. It shows that having big dreams are good and can be fulfilled with hard work and dedication. That is why I think this book is a must read for older readers. It is a way to inspire them to pursue their dreams and find ways to change the world for the better.
Besides writing the picture book McDonnell also illustrated it. Some readers may recognize McDonnell from his comic strip entitled “Mutts.” It is nice to see this author working in another setting. Not only will this book attract readers to his other children’s books but also his comic strip.
McDonnell’s artwork is wonderful and childlike, fitting with the age of the character of Jane in the picture book. The addition of the nature stamps on the pages make the story feel like a scrapbook and add interests to the text so it is more than just words. Jubilee, the stuffed toy chimpanzee, appears to be real in the illustrations. Whatever adventure Jane goes on Jubilee is there to keep her company. This is very fitting, especially with Goodall’s work with chimpanzees as an adult.
An interesting addition to the illustrations was the inclusion of some of Goodall’s own artwork in a two page spread in the middle of the book. The alligator on the page is part of “The Aligator Society” that she created and led as a child. This makes the idea of a child having dreams and working to fulfill those dreams all the more realistic. Also readers can relate to Goodall, because she once was a child too and had her own artwork.
For readers who are interested links are provided to get more information of Jane Goodall at her website here and also her program Roots & Shoots here.
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