VOICES IN THE PARK

Browne’s exceptional out-of-time story—about a visit to the neighborhood park by his familiar gorillas—is told from four perspectives. The first voice is that of a prim, supercilious mother, who has taken her son and pedigreed dog to the park for some air. She sees danger lurking in her charges’ dealings with the great unwashed: her dog with a mongrel, her son with a ragamuffin. The second voice is careworn, but ultimately cheered by the visit; a jobless father takes his mutt and his daughter to the park for a break from his worries. Voice three is the first lady’s son—hesitant and hemmed in—who finds a moment of liberation when playing with the jobless father’s daughter. And lastly is that of the girl herself, a happy-go-lucky fixer-upper for all those who step into her radiance. This quartet of interpolating impressions has a cinematic quality, where real objects and their shadows often take separate paths. Browne’s artwork is deft and kaleidoscopic, with sidelong imagery and a nod to RenÇ Magritte that heighten the surreal aspects of the story. (Picture book. 5-11)