With wonderful foresight, the United States Constitution calls for presidential elections every four years. Candidates try to win the approval of their parties and then need to convince the populace to vote for them.
Because of this, the individual personalities of the presidential hopefuls are important. Later, when running the government, presidential quirks are often the subject of cartoons and television shows. Hanoch Piven has written a clever book using ordinary objects to show the egocentricities of a number of famous presidents.
Through the use of everything from nails to marshmallows, Piven literally shows readers what presidents are made of.
Above each president, the author writes a phrase in a box describing the man. Piven states that George Washington is made of good deeds. As befitting the "Father of the country," Washington is pragmatically dramatized helping put out a fire that actually occurred several months before his death. The author uses flags for Washington’s eyes and has him dressed in a fire fighter’s outfit. Appropriately enough, George is pumping a well handle with his foot while throwing a cup of water on the blaze.
Andrew Jackson is described as having a hot temper. His eyes are made of bullets and his mouth is formed by a pistol. True to his personality, Piven has made Jackson’s nose out of a boxing glove. Jackson is known to have fought many duels resulting in his opponents being wounded and killed. Jackson was so tough that in one duel after he had been shot through the chest near his heart, he calmly took aim and shot his opponent. The stern character of "Old Hickory," as Jackson was nicknamed is clearly evident in his portrait.
Ulysses S. Grant’s picture is comical. Grant was known to be a man in a hurry and once was arrested for recklessly driving his carriage through the streets of Washington D.C. Though fined $20 for his speeding buggy, Grant actually paid the fine and then wrote a letter praising the diligence of the policeman. Piven places Grant on a racing chariot drawn by a horse crafted from a knife, pliers and wheels. Appropriately enough, Grant is dressed like a modern NASCAR driver with a racing helmet. His famous beard is made from nails and screws while an ignition key cleverly forms a pair of sunglasses for the charging general.
Theodore Roosevelt is stated to have "endless energy." As befits a man whose favorite expression was "bully," Teddy can be seen playing tennis, rowing boats, climbing mountains and playing hide-and-seek with his children. The author turns his pinz nez eyeglasses into the beginning of an electrical outlet for his red light bulb nose. It doesn’t take the reader long to see that Roosevelt is a charming man with boundless enthusiasm for life while having the capacity to light up his surroundings.
Piven continues to create unusual and interesting settings for the presidents. What president gets stuck in the bathtub? Who is a picky eater? Which president could voraciously devour an apple in three bites? What type of jelly bean did Ronald Reagan like so much that he hid them from others? To find out the answers to these and many other questions, go to the library and check out "What Presidents Are Made Of" by Hanoch Piven.
Elementary school students will enjoy this book. They will find the drawings of the presidents from all kinds of everyday objects to be amusing. Adults will find the pictures interesting as well. I hope you get a chance to share this fun book with a family member.
