A Tulip in Winter: A Story About Folk Artist Maud Lewis

Beginning with the early life of Canadian artist Maud Lewis (1903–1970), Stinson conveys in brief bursts of text the biography of “a woman as one-of-a-kind as her house.” As young Lewis matures, and a condition (noted in back matter as rheumatoid arthritis) leads to the end of her piano-playing, she turns to painting: “Shapes./ Lines./ Colours./ Everywhere!” After her parents die, and she becomes a fish peddler’s housekeeper, the artistic eye and spirit nurtured in childhood find her adding painted details to the home. Depicting a world populated with bright flowers, singing birds, and curious cats, Soloy, modeling digital illustrations on Lewis’s cheery naïf aesthetic, shows how, despite her frequent lack of materials, Lewis was driven to adorn the world with “what was good and beautiful.” This deeply sympathetic biography is testimony to a creative life that yielded joyful art. Back matter includes a biography and creators’ notes. Ages 4–8. (Mar.)