Veronesi, T. (2012). Soul ground photo
essay (Kindle edition). United States: Amazon Digital Services.
(After many searches I could not find an original publisher listed,
except for the author)
Grade/Ages: 10th Grade and Up
Genre: Nonfiction/Informational (Photo Essay)
Summary: This photo essay is a reflection of the Normandy Invasion
during World War II. The text includes
photographs of historical, war landmarks of that region and are accompanied by
quotes by famous people, mostly Americans, such as Abraham Lincoln concerning
the sad and terrifying truth about war.
Evaluation:
The term photo essay is used
within the title of this text. In reflection of the attributes that describe a
photo essay I found that there were equal amounts of photographs and written
text, also the text was condensed in order to provoke thoughts and emotions
within the reader. Yet, I believe this
book is only appropriate for young adults who have prior knowledge of war and
the results of war in order for the symbolism utilized in the quotations to be
understood. In addition, the topic of
war would indicate that this book could be categorized
as “social science”, in that it discusses interpersonal relationships of
soldiers during a time of war or after.
Our class text also discusses bibliotherapy,
which I feel is the purpose this book, not only for the reader yet for the
author as well. I feel this way because
the author uses quotes that would evoke empathy from the reader for soldiers
and would help those who have not served in the Armed Forces to understand the
terrors that service people see, yet they are committed to doing what is needed
to preserve the rights of Americans. Throughout the balance of this blog I will
discuss the negative and positive aspects of this photo essay.
Negative Attributes
When I searched for photo essays on my Kindle, I looked for books that
I could draw information from and possibly use in future instruction. Then I
found Soul Ground, upon reading the summary I thought that
this book would tell a story about soldiers who landed in Normandy during the
invasion. I knew this book would not be suitable for younger children; however
I was hoping that it may prove useful in middle and high school grades. Once I
began reading the book, I became confused. The story did not have a plot or any
type of sequence, instead the structure of the story was that it offered a description of war. When considering the authors style of writing, most of the writing was concise and if the
reader had a prior knowledge of the results of war, the writing was also clear. Yet, I knew various types of dictions were
used as if the author were switching from one voice to another. As well, it seemed that the text was written
in free verse, being isolated,
unrhymed thoughts that were philosophical.
An example would be, “Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the
details of how he lived and how he died that distinguishes one man from
another.” Then, I realized why! When I
came to the back matter, and credits were listed I found that the writing in
the book was actually quotes from famous historical figures. There were not any photography credits or
quote credits listed on the pages. I
found this very confusing, because in the Kindle format none of the page
numbers corresponded, so I was not even sure who wrote this quote until I did a
Google search and found that this quote was said by Ernest Hemmingway. In
summary, the quotes in isolation were clear however there were no text
features, such as credits or picture captions, to allow the reader to
understand why those quotes were used and how they corresponded with the
pictures.
I also found this photo essay to
be factually inaccurate. My reason being that a few of the quotes used personification, specifically speaking
of war as if it were a person or tangible object. I understand the theme of the
book; the author wanted the reader to learn that war is savage and cruel especially to those fighting on the front
lines. However, the use of
personification made obvious that this was not a book of factual information,
just opinions. One example, of personification would be, “I hate war as only a
soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its
futility, its stupidity.” This quote was said by Dwight D. Eisenhower. I feel that this author missed a chance to
give his book validity, by using quotes that included personification making it
historically inaccurate.
Positive Attributes
One of the indicators of quality informational texts is being able to
distinguish between fact, opinion or theory. Once I read the book and figured
out that the text was comprised of quotes, I
distinguished easily that this book presented opinions. The back matter
served its purpose effectively in allowing the reader to see that all of these
opinions, in the form of quotes, came from varied individuals. In fact, since the author chose to use quotes
from so many; I feel that he did present a variety
of perspectives of war. Furthermore,
he chose valid people in which to quote from that had experience with war and
philosophy. In addition to the three figures I have mentioned, he also included
quotes from war heroes such as General Douglas MacArthur, political figures
like former President Ronald Reagan and Sir Winston Churchill and philosophers
such as Cicero. In total, he utilized
quotes from 18 different figures in history.
The positive being that he offered thoughts on war from many different
perspectives and the fact that he chose historically famous people, gave the
opinions offered in his photo essay validity.
The photographs used were also
accurate, all being historical landmarks of the Normandy Invasion. Moreover, he utilized a variety of photographs from landscapes to photos of artillery and even
portraits of soldiers. Even though the photographs were not captioned, they
did serve as a visual of the brutality that happens during war. The photos even
portrayed a mood of sadness and loneliness. In many of the pictures there was
one subject alone in a field. An example would be the second photograph in the
text. It is a picture of one army tank
against a clouded sky. The army tank has
the appearance of coming toward the viewer, instilling a feeling of fear and
anticipation. I feel that since the
quotes shared opinions in a philosophical manner, the use of photographs drove
home the theme of the book through the mood they portrayed to the reader.
In general, I was not enthused about this book. Not just because it was unsuitable for
readers below the tenth grade, yet also the organization. Even though the quotes delivered the theme of
the book, text features, in the form of captions and quote credits, were needed
so that the reader would understand what he or she was viewing before reaching
the back matter.
Comprehension Strategy:
Since the photo essay that I
chose did not include bolded words, I have chosen one of the quotes that evoked
emotion within me to consider more deeply.
As a result, please see the “So What” strategy presented in a diagram
below. I have also included my BIG
questions within this diagram.