The Goldfish in the Chandelier

Newcomer Kesterson invents a backstory for a graceful Parisian chandelier that hangs in Los Angeles’s J. Paul Getty Museum. A 19th-century boy named Louis Alexandre narrates; he introduces his doting, dotty uncle Henri, who calls his nephew “Alexandre le Grand.” Henri enlists Louis’s help in designing the chandelier, a commission from a wealthy client, and they entertain each other with stories-within-the-story about the flight of Alexander the Great (pieces of liver offered to flying griffins to carry him upward, purely fantasy) and the Montgolfier Brothers (hot-air balloon pioneers, historical fact), which inspire elements of their final creation. It’s a lot of entertainment in a small space—more like a chapter from a middle reader, actually—that develops the gratifying theme of the child mentored by a loving adult. Hovland’s (If the Walls Could Talk: Family Life at the White House) lightly comic pen-and-ink artwork provides a remarkable amount of visual information about the historical setting and supports the story without calling undue attention to itself. Kesterson provides additional details in a q&a, and a photograph of the real chandelier is included, too. Ages 7–10. (Mar.)