Puppets and Puppet Theatre

October 15, 1999
Motion and performance are the emphasis in these three books. Currell, the author of several books on puppets (e.g., The Compete Book of Puppet Theatre), presents a detailed manual with line drawings and photographs for constructing and staging several types of two- and three-dimensional puppets to be used by children or adults. Some of the moving toys in the Howes's book, such as jumping figures and bobbing birds, are constructed much like puppets, but this book also includes carousels, pinwheels, and a very clever little theater with magnetic characters. Maskwork combines historical information about ethnic masks that children can make for their own performances, with performance and staging tips included. All three books would be welcome in general crafts collections. The Currell and Foreman books are also suitable for theater collections.

Copyright 1999 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 1999
Whew! This overview of puppetry rushes by at road-rage speed, the author seemingly determined to cram everything into one 176-page book. London lecturer Currell, with five books to his credit, marshalls his expertise into both the how-to-fashion figures and staging information, including plenty of colorful professional puppets to gaze upon. The problem, then, lies not so much in the data but in their presentation. Drawings are usually not full-scale. The writing is unusually stilted. And no true projects or patterns exist; instead, the focus is on generic methods (foam rubber versus wood sculpting, for instance) and on universal techniques (control and manipulation, construction, and the like) to educate puppeteers in the broadest perspective possible. ((Reviewed October 1, 1999))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1999, American Library Association.)