Mr. Cornell's Dream Boxes

The children's picture book entitled Mr. Cornell's Dream Boxes, is a nonfiction work of art written in 2014 that explores Joesph Cornell's influence on the world of art.  Written by Jeanette Winter, this picture book encourages readers to become dreamers by seeing the world through a different aspect.  By reading this story, the reader gets to decide what kind of trait Mr. Cornell finds enjoyment using which in turn allows children to depict their own understanding of art.  In reality, Mr. Cornell creates shadow boxes which capture his lifetime memories by holding sacred parts of his life that mean the most to him. His shadow boxes are displayed and marketed towards children as he encourages them to become dreamers. 

The endless amount of imagination present in this book stood out to me more than anything.  Prior to reading this book, I had never heard of Joesph Cornell before and I did not know anything about him until I read the Author's Note at the end of the story.  This would be a great piece of literature to use in the classroom to encourage students think outside of their comfort zone and take in life by capturing every single moment.  In using this book as part of my future curriculum I envision myself reading the author's note to the children first so that they have an understanding of who Joesph Cornell is.  Another aspect of the story that stood out to me was the reference to Mr. Cornell's love for journaling through writing down all of his thoughts and ideas.  Seeing as how I am getting my master's degree in children's literature, the importance of encouraging children to love writing means more to me than anything.  This story sends a strong message to children as it encourages them to find their own individual way to take in and remember every aspect of life.  It made me stop and think about how sometimes I do not value life's precious moments enough and encouraged me to stop and think about how to best savor the little moments that mean the most in life.