Plot Summary
The Latin meaning for the word thesaurus is "treasure-house." This is how Peter Roget felt about his lists of words grouped together by similar meaning. This book is the story of Roget and his obsession with lists that began in childhood and which eventually resulted in the thesaurus with which we are now familiar.
Personal Reaction
I found Peter Roget's life fascinating and the illustrations within the pages of this book equally fascinating. I can relate to the painfully shy little boy who has a better rapport with books than he does with people. What a fun student introduction to the thesaurus! I found it interesting that Roget began his first book of lists when he was only eight years old, but his thesaurus was not published until he was in his early seventies.
Memorable Literary Element
Much of the writing is in narrow, list-like columns and appear to have been penned by Roget himself, complete with erasure marks and scribbles.
Illustrations
The combination of watercolor and collage-type artwork makes this book visually unique and interesting. It really gives the book a more personal feel, as if you are thumbing through a scrapbook that he kept of his life.
The Latin meaning for the word thesaurus is "treasure-house." This is how Peter Roget felt about his lists of words grouped together by similar meaning. This book is the story of Roget and his obsession with lists that began in childhood and which eventually resulted in the thesaurus with which we are now familiar.
Personal Reaction
I found Peter Roget's life fascinating and the illustrations within the pages of this book equally fascinating. I can relate to the painfully shy little boy who has a better rapport with books than he does with people. What a fun student introduction to the thesaurus! I found it interesting that Roget began his first book of lists when he was only eight years old, but his thesaurus was not published until he was in his early seventies.
Memorable Literary Element
Much of the writing is in narrow, list-like columns and appear to have been penned by Roget himself, complete with erasure marks and scribbles.
Illustrations
The combination of watercolor and collage-type artwork makes this book visually unique and interesting. It really gives the book a more personal feel, as if you are thumbing through a scrapbook that he kept of his life.
Reviews/Awards
The Horn Book Magazine - Apt language and ingenious imagery combine to tell the life story of Peter Mark Roget, creator of the thesaurus. A solitary, though not unhappy, child, Roget spends his time keeping lists and ordering the natural and cultural wonders he finds in abundance. He studies to become a doctor, teaches, joins academic societies, raises a family, and continues to capture and classify the universe, eventually publishing his Thesaurus, a catalog of concepts ordered by ideas, in 1852. Bryant’s linear telling follows Peter closely, expressing his curiosity, sensitivity, and populist spirit in language that is both decorous and warm. Clever book design and visionary illustration add layers of meaning, as images come together in careful sequence. On the cover a cacophony of iconographic ideas explodes from the pages of a book. The opening endpapers arrange these same concepts in a vertical collage that recalls spines on a bookshelf. The title spread features the letters of the alphabet as stacked blocks, as a child manages them, and from there the pages grow in complexity, as Roget himself grows up. Sweet embellishes her own gentle watercolors with all manner of clippings and realia, corralling the pictures into order according to concept, number, or color. A timeline and detailed author and illustrator notes follow the narrative, with suggested additional resources and a facsimile page of Roget’s first, handwritten book of lists. And the closing endpapers, with the comprehensive classification scheme of the first thesaurus, fully realize the opening organizational promise.
The Horn Book Magazine - Apt language and ingenious imagery combine to tell the life story of Peter Mark Roget, creator of the thesaurus. A solitary, though not unhappy, child, Roget spends his time keeping lists and ordering the natural and cultural wonders he finds in abundance. He studies to become a doctor, teaches, joins academic societies, raises a family, and continues to capture and classify the universe, eventually publishing his Thesaurus, a catalog of concepts ordered by ideas, in 1852. Bryant’s linear telling follows Peter closely, expressing his curiosity, sensitivity, and populist spirit in language that is both decorous and warm. Clever book design and visionary illustration add layers of meaning, as images come together in careful sequence. On the cover a cacophony of iconographic ideas explodes from the pages of a book. The opening endpapers arrange these same concepts in a vertical collage that recalls spines on a bookshelf. The title spread features the letters of the alphabet as stacked blocks, as a child manages them, and from there the pages grow in complexity, as Roget himself grows up. Sweet embellishes her own gentle watercolors with all manner of clippings and realia, corralling the pictures into order according to concept, number, or color. A timeline and detailed author and illustrator notes follow the narrative, with suggested additional resources and a facsimile page of Roget’s first, handwritten book of lists. And the closing endpapers, with the comprehensive classification scheme of the first thesaurus, fully realize the opening organizational promise.
Promotion Idea
This book could be the first lesson of the school year and it would continue throughout the year. Following Peter Roget's example, the class will keep a journal of words which they will refer to, and even add to, as needed during writing activities this year, and hopefully in the years to come. I would also assign students a partner to work with to create a synonym Wordle similar to the ones below. Students would pick a starter word, randomly, from a container. Students' Wordles could be displayed in the classroom or hallway.
This book could be the first lesson of the school year and it would continue throughout the year. Following Peter Roget's example, the class will keep a journal of words which they will refer to, and even add to, as needed during writing activities this year, and hopefully in the years to come. I would also assign students a partner to work with to create a synonym Wordle similar to the ones below. Students would pick a starter word, randomly, from a container. Students' Wordles could be displayed in the classroom or hallway.