Amelia Earhart: This Broad Ocean;
written and illus. by Sarah Stewart Taylor and Ben Towle.
Center for Cartoon Studies/
Disney-Hyperion, 2010.
Sturm's graphic-novel biography Satchel Paige: Striking Out Jim Crow (BCCB 3/08) tells the story of its subject through the account of a fictional observer; similarly, this account follows Amelia Earhart through the eyes of young Grace, a resident of the small coastal Newfoundland village from where Earhart and her pilot hope to begin a transatlantic flight in 1927. Grace is a reporter and "publisher," posting her handmade news-sheet on the wall for all in town to read, and she's fascinated with Earhart; eventually, the aviator gives the girl an intimate interview, sealing Grace's admiration for life but also making her keenly uneasy about the risks that Earhart faces. This approach brings the legendary aviation pioneer and her fame into a manageable context, juxtaposing the pressure of publicity and the clutch of hovering reporters (who kill the boredom by drinking with Earhart's pilot) against the laconic, solitary figure of Earhart herself. The sea is a constant presence, its destructive capabilities a known factor to the villagers (whose houses are filled with items washed p on the beach after wrecks), and the very real possibility of Earhart's ending up in it is hauntingly vivid even without the foreshadowing of her end; that's handled with originality and sharp poignance as a now-grown Grace, working at a newspaper in the city, hears of the fate of her heroine. The paneled visuals are swift, sure and understated, like Earhart herself, with economic but effective portraiture. Reluctant readers, adventure fans, and those who themselves yearn for the skies will be sucked right into the immediacy here, and they'll have a new understanding of the impact of a woman who's often reduced to just a one-line summation. End matter includes additional notes that flesh out details, and a bibliography.
— Bulletin of Center for Children's Books
© 2010 Bulletin of Center for Children's Books