BOOK SHOP - The Goldfish in the Chandelier

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ALEXANDER THE GREAT, DECORATIVE ARTS, GRIFFINS, HOT-AIR BALLOONS, HOVLAND, MACARONS, PARIS

THE GOLDFISH IN THE CHANDELIER

Casie Kesterson

Illustrations by Gary Hovland

A different kind of adventure story, The Goldfish in the Chandelier takes place just outside Paris in the early 1800s. Uncle Henri is stuck. He has been commissioned to design a chandelier for a great house in Paris, but he can’t figure out what form it should take. His young nephew, Louis Alexandre, comes to the rescue with some dazzling ideas—inspired by Alexander the Great and the first hot-air balloon flights over Paris—that surprise them both. Together, they use a lot of imagination to create something that never existed before—something new, unexpected, and very beautiful.

This delightful story was inspired by the Gérard-Jean Galle chandelier, one of the most popular pieces in the J. Paul Getty Museum’s impressive collection of French decorative arts.

Ages seven to ten.

Formerly on staff at the Getty Research Institute, Casie Kesterson currently is a consultant specializing in matters relating to the history of collecting. Gary Hovland’s illustrations have appeared in such nationally and internationally known publications as the New Yorker, the Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times. His illustrations for If the Walls Could Talk: Family Life at the White House (Simon & Schuster, 2004) won a Toy Portfolio Platinum Book Award in 2005.

Buy: https://shop.getty.edu/products/the-goldfish-in-the-chandelier-978-1606060940?_pos=1&_sid=cccbc0dab&_ss=r

PARIS

A GIRAFFE GOES TO PARIS

Mary Tavener Holmes & John Harris

Illustrated by Jon Cannell

Imagine a giraffe that can sail from Alexandria, Egypt, to Marseille, France, in a boat with a special hole for her neck. Imagine a giraffe that can walk from Marseille to Paris in forty-one days, wearing stylish boots and a cape. Imagine a giraffe that captures the attention of a hundred thousand spectators in Paris as she parades through the city, inspiring paintings, poetry, porcelain designs, and even an exotic hairstyle. Imagine Belle, a gift from the pasha of Egypt to the king of France in 1827, a giraffe who made history. This book presents Belle’s true story, told in the imagined words of her devoted Sudanese caretaker, Atir, who accompanied her on her journey to Paris and stayed with her till her death eighteen years later. Illustrated with artifacts and paintings from the nineteenth century and with Jon Cannell’s jaunty artwork, Belle’s remarkable story both captivates and informs. An author’s note and pronunciation guide are included.

Buy: https://a.co/d/eHIvEuI

HOT-AIR BALLOONS

THE TWENTY-ONE BALLOONS

William Pene du Bois

Professor William Waterman Sherman intends to fly across the Pacific Ocean. But through a twist of fate, he lands on Krakatoa, and discovers a world of unimaginable wealth, eccentric inhabitants, and incredible balloon inventions. Winner of the 1948 Newbery Medal.

Buy: https://a.co/d/8PcZrFG

HOT-AIR BALLOONS

PIGAROONS

Arthur Geisert

When the thieving Pigaroons steal a block of ice the River Patrollers had intended to carve into a sculpture for their ice festival, the Patrollers decide that they’ve had enough and devise a plan to teach their Pigaroon neighbors a lesson.

Buy: https://a.co/d/0GqVR32

DECORATIVE ARTS

SUMMARY CATALOGUE OF EUROPEAN DECORATIVE ARTS IN THE J. PAUL GETTY MUSEUM

Gillian Wilson and Catherine Hess

J. Paul Getty had a passion for the exquisitely made furniture and decorative objects of eighteenth-century France, which he began collecting in the 1930s. Gillian Wilson, who was curator of decorative arts since 1971, broadened and strengthened the collection, adding Boulle furniture, mounted oriental porcelain, tapestries, clocks, ceramics, and more. In the 1980s and 1990s the Getty Museum continued to enlarge its decorative arts holdings, creating a European sculpture department in 1984 and adding glass, maiolica, goldsmiths’ work, pietre dure, and furniture from Italy and Northern Europe.

This book is a revised and expanded edition of Decorative Arts: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue of the Collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum. In addition to more than forty added acquisitions—among these, four wall sconces from Versailles that once belonged to Marie Antoinette and an elaborate upholstered bed from the collection of Karl Lagerfeld—it includes the results of years of research. Designed for scholars, students, and devotees of the decorative arts, this volume provides a comprehensive look at the Getty’s fine collection.

Buy: https://shop.getty.edu/products/summary-catalogue-of-european-decorative-arts-in-the-j-paul-getty-museum-978-0892366323?_pos=2&_sid=c9c768588&_ss=r

MACARONS

LADURÉE MACARONS: THE RECIPES

Vincent Lemains

Antonin Bonnet (Photographer)

In the middle of the 20th century, Pierre Desfontaines, cousin of Louis Ernest Ladurée, created the first Ladurée macaron by having the genius to stick two macaron cookies together and fill them with a flavorful ganache. Ever since then, the preparation has stayed the same. Each season Ladurée celebrates this little round cake that’s crispy outside and soft inside, a perfect balance of aromas and textures, by creating new flavors. Each year the palette of flavors and colors grows, from the classic chocolate or raspberry to festive macarons, exotic flavors for certain destinations, fashion designers, perfumes etc. This book presents each of the 80 Ladurée macarons, their aromas, inspirations, trend books and of course all of the recipes to make them at home. At the end of the book there is a practical, step-by-step section to show exactly how Ladurée’s chefs make the cookies and the ganache fillings so you can be sure to succeed in making them too.

Buy: https://a.co/d/6dksV1O

GRIFFINS

GREECE! ROME! MONSTERS!

John Harris
Illustrated by Calef Brown

Everybody’s heard of a centaur, but not everyone has seen a blue centaur dressed to head out to a disco! He’s one of the updated mythological creatures who populate Greece! Rome! Monsters!

This book presents the story of twenty creepy creatures from harpies to Medusa herself to the fire-breathing Chimaera in jazzy retellings and with eye-popping illustrations. Together, the words and pictures provide children (and grownups!) with close encounters of the mythological kind. Includes a bonus pronunciation guide and a pop quiz that will test to see if young readers have REALLY been paying attention.

Ages five and up.

John Harris is a former senior editor at Getty Publications. Southern California illustrator Calef Brown’s children’s books include Polkabats and Octopus Slacks and Dutch Sneakers and Flea Keepers. His work has appeared in Time, Newsweek, and other publications.

Buy: https://shop.getty.edu/collections/childrens/products/greece-rome-monsters-978-0892366187

HOVLAND

IF THE WALLS COULD TALK

Jane O’Connor

Illustrated by Gary Hovland

In case you’ve ever wondered, the walls at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue have eyes and ears — and, what’s more, they don’t miss a thing. Now, listen up because the walls have a thing or two to tell you!
During President John Tyler’s presidency, the White House was such a mess that it was called the “Public Shabby House.”
President William Howard Taft was so large that he had to have a jumbo-size bathtub installed — one big enough for four people.
President Andrew Jackson’s “open door” policy at the White House resulted in 20,000 people showing up for his inauguration party. (The new president escaped to the quiet of a nearby hotel!)
President Abraham Lincoln didn’t mind at all that his younger sons, Tad and Willie, kept pet goats in their White House bedrooms.
Children all across the country sent in their own money to build an indoor swimming pool for wheelchair-bound President Franklin D. Roosevelt so that he could exercise.
President Harry S. Truman knew it was time to renovate the White House after a leg on his daughter’s piano broke right through the floor.
Hear these funny, surprising stories and more about the most famous home in America and the extraordinary families who have lived in it.

Buy: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/If-the-Walls-Could-Talk/Jane-OConnor/9780689868634