UNNATURALLY BLUE

A young swimmer gets the blues.

The text’s poetic voice belongs to an auburn-haired youngster with dark eyes and pale, freckled skin, surrounded by other children at the community pool. As the others splash and play, the protagonist stays off to the side under a sign that reads “NO RUNNING / NO DIVING / NO CRYING.” The youngster recalls participating in synchronized swimming—happier times. Now, though, “there just isn’t any room…to be a creature so blue.” The story takes a fantastical turn as the child dives down through a drain and into a swampy world where the youngster’s tears create a new watery environment. There, the narrator heals, transforming into a gilled, web-footed creature—a metaphor for overcoming depression? Unfortunately, the tale’s meaning is obscure, and the words and eerie illustrations alike seem aimed at an audience older than that of most picture books. When the child returns to the pool, none of the children are alarmed in the least by the protagonist’s transformation into a sea creature. In fact, they also seem to change into alligators, beavers, and turtles—or do they? While Eggenschwiler’s vividly saturated, surreal imagery is enticing, the line between fantasy and reality is blurred to the point of confusion; young readers likely won’t understand or readily engage with this work.

An oddly opaque look at coping with difficult emotions.