Sacred Places
Grade 1-5-Places sacred to Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, Christians, and Muslims are the focus of this striking tour of 28 religious sites around the world (omitting only the South American and Australian continents). After a two-page introduction to the five religions covered, the dual-level text begins. For younger readers, a few words in large type comment on the concept of the sacred and its association with specific places, accompanied by three-dimensional cut-paper illustrations. These necessarily general remarks climax in the observation that "some sacred places aren't made by people at all," and a picture of the night sky. On a second level, each picture has a caption that, although brief, captures specific practices of the religion that considers that site sacred. Simplification means that the differences across sects disappear. A positive emphasis means that cremation is not mentioned in the Ganges caption, and readers glean no hint of conflict around Jerusalem (where the Dome of the Rock "was built-as a symbol of the unity of the three religions that worship the God of Abraham"). Nevertheless, Sturges's open-minded view of religious aspirations is a worthy one. Laroche's rich and detailed art balances architectural impact with situation, use, and cultural context as a photograph could never do. Following Bridges Are to Cross (Putnam, 1998), these amazingly precise, subtly colored, and engagingly textured pictures and concise words show how places in the world can be bridges for the spirit.Patricia Lothrop-Green, St. George's School, Newport, RICopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.