Artists and Their Pets: True Stories of Famous Artists and Their Animal Friends

by Susie Hodge, Violet Lemay (Illustrator)

Did you know that the great Pablo Picasso had many pets, including a white mouse and a goat? And that Andy Warhol loved his dachshunds, Salvador Dalí liked ocelots and anteaters, and Georgia O'Keeffe had a passion for chows and Siamese cats? Artists and Their Pets tells these stories and many more with full-color illustrations and a chirpy narrative that will delight both art buffs and pet enthusiasts. 1140L

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Animals, Picture Books, Childrens, History, Juvenile

192 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2017

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book could use some serious editing. The title is misleading, since the only information you will find about the artists' pets are type of animal, name, and the dates the artists' acquired them (which I'm not sure matters that much). The rest of the text is a full of disjointed facts with confusing wording and repetitive words and phrases. I did not find anything cohesive that actually tells a story.

The illustrations are charming, though. The cover and title may draw readers to this book, but unfortunately they may be disappointed with the content.

[Nicholas Ball · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good summary of important artists and their pets. Definitely written in a simplistic style, sometimes explaining the meaning of words in brackets afterwards (e.g. "dissected (cut up)"). I took off a star as an adult as the simpler sentences and ideas made the narrative a little dull.

Obviously more suitable for children but once you are used to the tone a good little 3-4 page summary per artist to get the uncultured (yours truly) a bit more knowledgeable on important art movements and the personalities therein.

I definitely learned some new artists from this book (e.g. cat obsessed Tsuguharu Foujita)

[Debbie Hoskins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up from the kid's new non-fiction shelf in the library. The cover beckoned me. The book has been hanging around for about 6 weeks and I have to get it back to the library. I've started it. It's like-able. Will I finish it? I did finish it!
Words and illustrations work together very well. And it is a nicely designed book.

It is suitable for kids in upper elementary and middle school. The pets are used as a theme to show and explain the artist and their work. There is a glossary of art styles. The artist, Violet Lemay, keeps to her own illustrative style, but is able to give a recognizable rendition of each artist's work. This is a solid introduction to art and Includes a variety of artists that you don't always find in children's literature, like Suzanne Valadon, Ai WeiWei, Franz Marc, David Hockney, Sir Edwin Landseer, and Tsuguharu Fougita.
Art teachers, librarians, and other educators will need to introduce the book to kids.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Each artist has about 10 pages dedicated to their life story, including their childhood, important influences, and major works they are known for. The illustrations were cute and the text was simple to understand. However, only a sentence or two is included about each artist's pet, which was very disappointing since the title leads one to believe the book will be more focused on the pets, and have more information about them than just their name and breed.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wouldn't call this book "artists and their pets" simply because there's very little about the artists pets and more a middle grade biographical profile of the artists, who happened to have pets.

The stories are well done and capture the essence of the artists and their work including a glossary of terms about different eras of artistry, yet other than naming the pets and the fact that many hung around the artists' homes, it didn't capture the essence of the pets.

I'm also hoping that the final version is in color? I have an advanced copy in black and white and while the illustrations are provided of the animals and the artists most famous renderings, it's hard to full realize/imagine in black and white.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting. If you want to talk about art to reluctant art appreciative kids... toss in some pets of famous artists and there you go! Norman Rockwell... maybe boring but throw in his dog... and his neighbors dogs and his love of dogs... there you have it!
I actually really enjoyed it. I had a roommate in college who's degree was in art history and I though "Oh HOW BORING" But I have to say I might have some appreciation for Paul Klee (pronounced Clay. I was the glad the book cleared that up for m) What can I say I am sucker for geometric shapes.
I read this pretty fast but I read the highlighted author, googled their work went "cool!" or "Weird" or "I don't get it" and that was educational fun! It is going to make it on my staff pick stand! _

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

The publisher was generous enough to be handing out ARCs at this year's ALA conference, so I got to preview this (albeit in black-and-white vs. color illustrations) middle-grade non-fiction. Nice, brief vignettes into each artist's life (note the choice of words -- 'brief' -- don't expect full biographies of any of the subjects) and lovely, quirky illustrations by Lemay. My only gripe with this volume is that Hodge couldn't think of more than four female artists to include in the collection? Come on.

[Adhrit Pradeep · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everybody knows that famous painters like Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali kept pets.
But did You know that:
Salvador Dali was seen walking an anteater and kept two exotic cats
And that another painter let his domestic cats trod over his wet paintings?
There are also other extraordinary things that can happen. I personally like this book because it tells you about so many things. I dislike this book partially too because animals are not supposed to be kept as pets unless they are domesticated naturally.

Grab this book to find out mores about such fun interests of famous artists.

[Nefertari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bit of a misleading title - the book really doesn’t spend much time on artists’ pets, except as a vehicle to introduce grade school children to the lives of famous artists and their work. But in that respect, it’s terribly cute and cartooned. Author also does a good job of treating the more salacious bits of some artists’ lives matter-of-factly.

[Jami M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations and simple, yet informative, biographies of a variety of artists. The book doesn’t actually spend much time on their pets, but just enough to be interesting. A great book for a kid that likes art and loves animals.

[Sophie Lipton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Almost a companion to Writers and their Pets, although by a different author, this book presents us the mostly unknown stories of famous artists - from Frida Kahlo to Salvador Dali - and their favourite mascots. The large colorful illustrations add a touch of whimsy to this charming volume.

[Ava Falzerano · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a really fun and simple read. It somewhat feels like a comic book. This would be a great read for grade school children. While it doesn’t provide much sustainable historic facts, it’s a fun read to hear about the amazing animals in famous artists lives.

[Cadie Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a really engaging way to introduce the kids to famous artists and their style of painting. They were sad when we finished it.

[Lisette · Rating 2 out of 5]

Neat concept but disappointing execution. No photos of any of the pets or artists. No visuals of the artists' works. Just simple bios and cartoons. The cartoons are cute.

[Seema Rao · Rating 2 out of 5]

Enjoyable enough tales of famous artists and their animals, from ocelots to dogs.

[Amanda Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love all the interesting stories and information about the artists. It gained the attention of my students as well.

[Hillary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too cute! I loved the interpretation of the artists' work and their animals. Good job.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.