The Sleeping Gypsy - Hardcover

* "Neatly conceived and wittily executed, Gerstein's story is an example of the visual thinking strategies often used when children visit museums."--The Horn Book, Starred Review

"Gerstein interprets Rousseau's painting style both faithfully and freely, and his story suggests that there's nothing inevitable about the famous works of art we think we know."--Publishers Weekly

"This is a splendid springboard for prediction and interpretation of the painting itself and for engaging children with other cryptic works that beg to have a backstory supplied."--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"In reproducing the artist's dream, Gerstein evokes the same surrealistic nature of the painting, but his pesky animals lighten the tone . . . this title offers children a story and information about an important Western artist and his work."--School Library Journal

A fantastical reimagining of the story behind Henri Rousseau's masterpiece features a dreaming silhouette who paints the image of a sleeping girl beside a menagerie of animals before painting out the animals who dislike how they are portrayed until only the girl and the lion that claims her remain.