Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade

                                     By Melissa Sweet

This book tells the story of the life of Anthony "Tony" Fredrick Sarg, the puppeteer responsible for the birth of the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. Mixed media is prominent on every page including the front matter. The beginning end pages are images of the "Tony Sarg Marionette Book" along with marionette "parts" that appear extremely lifelike (Sweet uses this technique throughout the book). The last end page includes a vertical copy of the original advertisement from The New York Times in 1933 promoting the Macy's Parade. The end pages alone tell the story in a condensed and "visually enhanced" version.  

Sweet begins the book displaying a picture of Anthony Sarg within a picture frame "hanging" on the page.  His years of life (1880-1942) are placed underneath using a scrapbooking method of text. The opposite page includes the quotation: "Every little movement has a meaning of its own. -Tony Sarg" appearing in the same scrapbooking/mixed media technique. The background consists of various types of notebook, journal, flashcard, and artist paper reflecting the theme of "creativity." 

The story itself consists of a different type of method for the text and illustrations. The illustrations are draw and contain small sections of Sweet's mixed media technique used introduced in the front matter. The majority of text is a printed font and located outside the bordered illustrations. The layout of some of the pages is vertical to emphasize the height and grandeur of the balloons. Sweet also uses position and size to make the same emphasis. The balloons size is monumental compared to the buildings, and characters to mimic the "actual size" of the balloons created by Sarg. The balloons size in the illustrations become larger and larger as the book progresses due to the fact that Sarg made the balloons larger each year as his method of operating them changed and improved with time. 

The theme of "puppeteering" is present throughout the book.  Sweet uses "stage models" to frame certain illustrations in the story.  For example, in the illustration depicting the crowd watching the parade, the reader feels as though they are inside the Macy's window looking out. Also, on the last page Sweet concludes the story with an image of a curtain "closing" over a silhouette of Sarg with the parade in the background.  Both images appear as though they are "on stage" like the marionettes made by Sarg. 

Sweet includes a two page information section at the back of the book.  Here readers can view her author's note explaining the methods and research used during the creation of the book. Other information including an actual picture of Sarg and one of his balloons, a thank-you note to Sarg from a child and the author's thank-yous and resource list are presented using the same scrapbooking method presented in the front matter. Sweet also includes a think to her website with even more information about the creation of the book: http://melissasweet.net.