This charming book shows you how to have fun with a pastime that has delighted children and adults for generations: making shadow pictures on the wall with your hands and fingers. Selected from the pages of two clever 19th-century picture books, 28 hand-shadow illustrations demonstrate how to create marvelous images of a goose, deer (with antlers), birds, a bunny, a dog, an elephant, a tortoise, and a host of other familiar creatures. For extra enjoyment, the illustrations are accompanied by lively, often hilarious verses by Frank Jacobs, whose zany humor and wacky parodies have appeared in numerous publications. With this book and a bit of practice , you'll soon be delighting friends and relatives with an entertaining performance of shadow art.

Generations of entertainers have amused audiences of children and adults with the art of hand shadows, using only a light source and their own two hands to form immediately recognizable profiles of people and animals. Lovers of nostalgia and aspiring hand shadow artists will delight in this facsimile of a 1913 book, which features more than 50 hand shadows. These quaint illustrations depict many different types of shadows, from swans, rabbits, and other animals to historic figures and fictional characters. Each hand shadow is accompanied by a description of specific hand positioning and an illustration. Additional helpful tips include instructions on lighting, projection screens, and hand exercises.

Puppetry is arguably the most widespread form of performance. The artistry of puppetry includes aspects of the visual arts, theatre, music, and dance. Puppets can be traced as far back as ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome and are found today in cultures worldwide, across the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia. John Bell shows how puppets have been used to relay myths, poke fun at political figures, comment on cultural events of the period, express moral stories, and entertain adults and children alike. This richly illustrated book gives a historical overview and looks at the wide variety of this traditional art form. From European and Asian puppets in modern and ancient times to the Puppet Modernism movements, the book explores the important innovators and innovations of puppetry. Brief biographies of key figures such as Tony Sarg (credited with creating the first over-life-size puppets used for parades), Paul McPharlin (creator of Punch’s Circus), and Jim Henson (world-reknowned creator of many puppets, including the Muppets) help describe the evolution of puppetry. Definitions and descriptions of a variety of puppet styles, including shadow puppets, marionettes, hand puppets, rod puppets, and many others, add to the understanding of this fascinating form of art. With over one hundred color illustrations, this book highlights the "lives" of such characters as Kermit the Frog, Punch and Judy, Jack Pumpkinhead, and the traditional Chinese puppet Te-Yung to reveal the ways that puppets have become an integral part of many cultures. Captivating and fun, this book offers valuable insight into the wonderful world of puppetry.

Describes the techniques used to create such hand shadows as a moose, a running rabbit, a hissing cobra, a man shaving, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, and Fidel Castro.