‘Vincent van Gogh’ by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara is an engaging and beautifully illustrated biography aimed at young readers, providing a glimpse into the life and art of the renowned painter.

Plot: ★★★★☆

Vincent van Gogh is an immensely fascinating individual, and it's always wonderful to find a new read about him. The plot effectively covers the major milestones of van Gogh's life and career, offering a concise yet comprehensive overview of his journey as an artist.

Character: ★★★★☆

The portrayal of van Gogh feels accurate and relatable, capturing his passion, struggles, and unique vision. It offers a balanced view of his character, highlighting both his genius and his personal challenges.

Illustrations: ★★★★☆

The illustrations are fabulous, really capturing the essence of van Gogh and his life. They complement the text well and provide a visual representation that young readers will find appealing and engaging.

Engagement: ★★★★☆

The book is very engaging, with a narrative style that keeps readers interested in van Gogh's story. The combination of intriguing facts and beautiful illustrations makes it a captivating read for both children and adults.

Readability: ★★★★☆

The readability is excellent, with clear and simple language that is easy for young readers to understand. The text is well-organized and flows smoothly, making it accessible without oversimplifying van Gogh's complex life.

Enjoyment: ★★★★☆

The book is very enjoyable, providing both an educational and entertaining experience. Readers will appreciate learning about van Gogh's life and art, and the engaging presentation makes it a delightful read.


‘Vincent van Gogh’ by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara is a well-crafted and engaging biography that brings the story of the famous artist to life. With its accurate portrayal, stunning illustrations, and accessible language, it is a wonderful addition to any young reader's library, offering an inspiring look at the life and work of one of history's most beloved painters.

Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara's great and inspiring series of children's books is making waves around the world. I had seen them many times but never read one. That changed when the Vincent van Gogh book caught my eye – I knew it was time to start the series! 😊

This delightful 32-page book brings readers the life of one of the world's most famous painters. It starts with his childhood and school days, touches on the hardships he faced, and concludes with his tragic end. Naturally, the book doesn’t delve into every detail or linger on van Gogh's lowest points, as it is intended for young, curious readers to inspire and motivate them. Even though I'm not so tiny anymore, I found myself inspired.

In addition to its well-written and concise content, the book features beautiful watercolor illustrations that are uniquely suited to the story. You can’t imagine this book with any other style. The pictures are extremely colorful and cheerful, often capturing more attention than the accompanying text. They are excellently painted and perfectly chosen! I highly recommend this book for little ones who love reading or art! 😊

Thank you so much, NetGallery and Frances Lincoln Children's Books, for this wonderful reading experience and for the ARC copy!

Review in Estonian (Aug 26, 2024): https://brixieblog.wordpress.com/2024/08/26/vincent-van-gogh-maria-isabel-sanchez-vegara/

It's not secret if you've read any of my reviews that I love this series. I was so excited to see Vincent van Gogh's name on the list of upcoming releases! Couldn't wait to get my hands on it.

Here are my thoughts...

The watercolor illustration is absolutely stunning and really does van Gogh right. I was interested to see how the book would approach van Gogh's mental illness and perhaps even his physical ailments and diseases, and in my opinion for the age group they've done a great job of nailing the hight points and leaving the rest for a more mature mind. I'm glad they highlighted his relationship with Theo as it was so important to the success (albeit it little during his life) of van Gogh.

5/5 from me. Would recommend to any growing mind!

This is such a lovely introduction to Van Gogh. The beautiful illustrations really immerse you in his style, and I think the facts are simplified very well for children. It sticks to the very basic points of his story, celebrating his talent and his love for his brother without shying away from how troubled his life could be.

I haven't checked out any of the other books in this series, but after reading this one I'm excited to!

(Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.)

Short and sweet, I feel like this barely scratched the surface of Vincent's life - which is expected when it's aimed at kids - however it didn't read like it was aimed at kids. I'm really torn on it as I just feel it was lacking.. something.. but I wouldn't suggest anyone avoid it or say it wasn't worth reading.

A gorgeously illustrated book briefly explaining the life of Vincent Van Gogh. Perfect for children as glosses over the darker parts of his life and focuses on his ambitions and successes. Highly recommend for a family.

I love the Little People, Big Dreams series of books. In this one - the focus on Vincent van Gogh tells a story that is both insightful and inspiring. Even with the text and story being geared for a younger generation, I learned a couple things about van Gogh's history that I hadn't known before. It felt like the key defining moments of his life were succinctly portrayed and laid out in a timeline that makes sense and gets the core points of the story across.

The end of the book really resonated - "he proved that - even when we feel a bit lost - we can find joy by doing the things we love most" and the way that sentiment is echoed in the timeline at the end - "...when we find something we love, we should follow it with all our heart." These are key principles for kids to learn - and seeing that demonstrated in the story of a famous artists life will resonate. Also, the way that mental health was addressed makes a lot of sense and lays the groundwork for awareness.

The illustrations are stunning and support the text/story on each page. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC to read and review.

Thoughts:
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This is the first Little People, Big Dreams but I absolutely love van Gogh so I couldn’t resist picking this on up. It sncompasses the key points in his life from being a child to late in his life. I like the art timeline at the beginning and that the illustrations have thick strokes like he was known for. I personally loved the presence of the A Starry Night images used twice (since it’s my personal favourite and the sunflowers throughout as its what he’s most well known for is a great touch.

Favourite Quote:
"And though it took time for the world to recognize his talent, little Vincent continued to express his feelings with every single brushstroke. He proved that even when we feel a bit lost-we can find ioy by doing the things We love most."

I love reading these books to my daughter, its such a good way of explaining important historical figures to her in a way that is understandable for a young audience. I would highly recommend these and will be keeping my eyes out for similar books in the future

The illustrations for this one are just too good. But the writing is not up to the standard I was expecting. I've read a handful of books from this series, so the way this book talks about the life of Gogh didn't feel anywhere near adequate or appropriate to represent his life.

"For him, painting wasn’t about making pretty pictures--it was about showing how he felt."

The people who appreciate art know the name. Vincent Van Gogh.

This book is a short biography of Van Gogh for children. It talks about his childhood, his brother Theo and how Vincent started his journey to be a painter.

I am a 26 year old adult and this is a children’s book. I adore books that are written for children. I want children to walk into this magical world of reading and I want them to know about art, history and artists. Here I am talking about this book from a child's perspective. Would I have been happy if I had read a book like this in my childhood? Yes. So this book would be useful for children to know Van Gogh on a primary level.

It's a pretty book. It has illustrations of Van Gogh's paintings. The book is colorful and the sentences are easy to read which is suitable for kids.

This book has been sent to me by #netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you #netgalley. #VincentVanGogh

A gorgeously illustrated book that presents Van Gogh's life and work in a way that is accessible to children.

I read this with my four year old and my nine year old who both enjoyed it. My eldest loved recognising Van Gogh's paintings integrated in the illustrations, which added an extra level of enjoyment.

A recommended read for fans of Van Gogh and fun educational read for children.

Thank you to Netgalley and Quarto Publishing group for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another great offering from author Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara....she really does a super job of explaining a life of a real historical figure, in prose that a child can understand. And this adult learned something too....always a plus! The illustrator did a great job too.....fun to see some of van Gogh's work/style incorporated too. The color scheme worked really well. This is another great book in a great series! Well done!
I received a digital ARC from Quarto Publishing Group-Frances Lincoln Children's Books via NetGalley for review purposes.

What a great kids book to give you the most important information in an easy way to understand for kids - very factual (without all the boring bits) and some great illustrations to help you understand what Vincent van Gogh's life and work was like.

Enjoyed this and pleased to see there are a lot more in the series. Look forward to reading some more. Would thoroughly recommend for young children.

I think these books are brilliant. Biographies made approachable for young elementary students make me happy. The illustrations are gorgeous and vibrant. The approach to mental health is excellent. I want to add the whole collection to my library as I think they can help students discover biography as a genre and be more exposed to historical figures that are part of our collective culture.

Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group- Francis Lincoln Children's Books and Net Galley for the eARC! All opinions are my own.

I received a copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley for review purposes.
I loved this book so much, and learned some things about Vincent that I did not know. The illustrative style is beautiful and seems to be modeled after Van Gogh’s artistic style. His mental illness is also discussed in a way that is acceptable for young children.

First of all, Thank You Netgalley for the ARC granted. I love books that teaches story of the world or public personalities for children , for it can be in sweet and inspring way even for adults. And altough it's ate for him to know about it, Van Gogh finally got his acknowlegdment from his art.

This entry in the Little People, Big Dreams series will introduce young readers but only to the biographical details of Van Gogh's life, but also to examples of some of his most notable works.

The book does delicately touch on mental illness and couches it in language that children will understand. Ultimately, the lesson portrayed here is that we can find joy even when we are troubled.

This entry in the Little People, Big Dreams series offers a sensitive and honest biography of Van Gogh for young children. Vincent’s close ties to his brother are noted as are his struggles to settle into adult life and fit in.

Readers watch as Vincent begins to paint and develops his own style. They also learn in a simple way about his on going mental health issues.

This title shows how children can learn about many different kinds of people including those whose lives are not easy. I recommend this book and also believe that it could lead to good discussions between children and adults.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

This book is a beautifully written and illustrated portrait of the life of artist Vincent Van Gogh. But it's also an amazingly inspiring tale of what courage through difficulty looks like and the transformative power of Art. While adult-oriented versions of Van Gogh's experience often come across as tragic, Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara's lovely prose strikes a stunning balance, not shying away from the difficulties that Van Gogh experienced but acknowledging them with compassion, never allowing the dark moments to overshadow the great meaning in Van Gogh's work and in his Art Spirit. This telling of Van Gogh's life history is not only an artful and warm introduction for young readers, but a comforting read for anyone who has struggled with mental illness, or even with simply finding their place in the world.