Snowflake Bentley is a picture book that tells a bit of obscure history—the story of Wilson Bentley’s mission to capture snowflakes on photographic film. The story is told by Jacqueline Briggs Martin and the woodcuts that illustrate it are by Mary Azarian.
Born in 1865 in Vermont, Bentley grew up in the snow belt and from an early age recorded the weather, experimented with raindrops, and studied snow crystals. He is credited with proving that no two snowflakes are alike and that they are all six-sided.
Seeing their beauty, young Bentley was determined to capture their images. First he tried drawing them, but they always melted before he finished. When he heard of a camera attached to a microscope, he’d found his method. Despite the daunting expense of such a camera, Bentley’s parents spent their savings on it.
The farmers in his neighborhood thought the venture was foolish. Nonetheless, Bentley spent years perfecting his methods.
Eventually universities were buying lantern slide copies of his photographs and he was publishing his pictures in magazines and traveling to give talks.
Snowflake Bentley, as he was endearingly called, is attributed with developing a technique of microphotography, and his story is a testament to long hard work driven by love.
The unique images complement the biography and make this book particularly interesting for 2nd to 5th graders.
Jacqueline Briggs Martin grew up in Maine and raised her family in Iowa. She began writing books because her children loved them, and she wanted to write books that children and adults could share.
Born in 1865 in Vermont, Bentley grew up in the snow belt and from an early age recorded the weather, experimented with raindrops, and studied snow crystals. He is credited with proving that no two snowflakes are alike and that they are all six-sided.
Seeing their beauty, young Bentley was determined to capture their images. First he tried drawing them, but they always melted before he finished. When he heard of a camera attached to a microscope, he’d found his method. Despite the daunting expense of such a camera, Bentley’s parents spent their savings on it.
The farmers in his neighborhood thought the venture was foolish. Nonetheless, Bentley spent years perfecting his methods.
Eventually universities were buying lantern slide copies of his photographs and he was publishing his pictures in magazines and traveling to give talks.
Snowflake Bentley, as he was endearingly called, is attributed with developing a technique of microphotography, and his story is a testament to long hard work driven by love.
The unique images complement the biography and make this book particularly interesting for 2nd to 5th graders.
Jacqueline Briggs Martin grew up in Maine and raised her family in Iowa. She began writing books because her children loved them, and she wanted to write books that children and adults could share.
