Other editions of book Out of the Shadows

As his parents' shouting tears through the walls to the room where he is supposed to be sleeping, young Neil Waldman buries his face in his pillow and tries to swallow his tears. The trauma of his parents' fighting rips at him, but it will also open the path to Neil's career as an artist. Seeking refuge from a turbulent home life, Neil and his three siblings turn to the world of creativity. Their mother's book from an art museum in Russia is all the children need to set fire to their imaginations. And from there, drawing and painting become much more than pleasurable diversions - they become lifelines of hope that allow the youths to believe that there is lasting beauty in the world. Recipient of the ALA Notable and Parents' Choice Awards, Waldman has written and illustrated more than 50 books for children. Narrator George Guidall delivers a powerful performance of the author's engaging memoir.

The compelling story of a torn family whose children grew up to be first-class artists will captivate young readers. How does a child grow up to become an artist? Where does the journey begin? For Neil Waldman, it began with finger paints in the kitchen of his family's Bronx apartment, with a mother who possessed a very special book from of paintings by an artist who signed his work with the name Vincent. Finger painting and drawing, however, were more than playtime activities. In the middle of the night, Neil and his siblings would hear the terrible screams of his parents as they fought. The children found that art was a means of surviving the anger and sadness that surrounded them. The book feature more than forty fine-art reproductions and pencil drawings by Bruce, Bryna, and Neil Waldman.