James Mayhew's Art Books

Katie and the Mona Lisa; Katie Meets the Impressionists

Dec 3, 2008

Two children's picture books by James Mayhew, Katie and the Mona Lisa and Katie Meets the Impressionists, take young readers on a whirlwind tour of classical painting.

All spiffed up in pony tails and a red raincoat, little Katie enjoys her afternoons at the art gallery with her grandma, but when Grandma falls asleep on a bench and Katie discovers that she can climb right into her favorite paintings, look out! Yes, it seems that all the museum's security guards are on an extended coffee break and while it may be that what Grandma doesn't know won't hurt her, it sure makes a mess of the museum. Can Katie get things back in order before her grandma wakes up? James Mayhew's art books, Katie and the Mona Lisa (Orchard Books, 1999; ISBN:1860397069 9781860397066) and Katie Meets the Impressionists (Orchard Books, 1997; ISBN:1860390188 9781860390180) make art galleries fun for everyone.

"I wish I knew what was making you smile," muses Katie at the foot of da Vinci's masterpiece.

Katie doesn't stay long, though, as the two, having become fast friends, decide to tour the art gallery together, hopping into some of the other paintings as they go. A visit to Raphael's St. George and the Dragon leaves a previously saved damsel in distress on the run from a fire-breathing dragon.

A dance with the characters in Botticelli's Primavera ends in a tumble of bodies and smashed oranges. An aerial tour of Venice on the back of Carpaccio's Lion of St. Mark sinks a gondola and sets the stage for a messy crash right back onto the museum floor where a furious entourage of newly displaced celebrities d'art awaits. Lucky for Katie and Mona Lisa, someone from da Vinci's An Angel with a Lute steps down to save the day.

What an adventure Katie and the Mona Lisa have had! Mona Lisa is truly smiling as she returns to her painting and Katie is just in time to catch up with her wakening grandma.

More of Mayhew's mayhem fills the pages of Katie Meets the Impressionists as our intrepid future art critic rambles through another reckless, art-hopping afternoon.

After collecting flowers in Monet's The Luncheon, destroying a garden in Renoir's Girl with a Watering Can, and being swarmed by angry bees in Monet's Field of Poppies, Katie harasses the audience of Renoir's Her First Evening Out and winds up on stage with Degas' Blue Dancers. Lucky for her, she's a big hit and is finally rewarded with the bouquet of flowers she's been trying to collect the whole time. Back in the gallery at last, Katie's grandma notices that things seem a bit amiss (after all, where does one get fresh flowers in a museum?), but happily accepts the birthday bouquet without too many questions.

Although hopelessly but unintentionally mischevious, Katie is a cute and loveable protagonist who doesn't just flip the stuffy elitism of the classic art world on it's high-browed head, but gives it a healthy drop-kick while she's at it. Art is for everyone, Katie will have you know, and author James Mayhew opens the imagination to it by digging a little deeper and asking not just why Mona Lisa is smiling, but where is she sitting and what is her world like? While the story lines may seem a bit contrived to an adult, kids are sure to enjoy these two rollicking and irreverent tales.

The copyright of the article James Mayhew's Art Books in Picture Books is owned by PJ Rooks. Permission to republish James Mayhew's Art Books in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.