Pretty and well-meant but unsuccessful
In this ambitious debut, Dyer strives to explicate the relationship between small things and big impacts.
“My favorite things…are little things,” a child in red dress and matching red hair bow narrates in the opening pages. From page to page, “little things” can mean either concrete items—from rocks through berries and seeds to stars (which are not exactly little)—or abstract ideas (light and shadow) or, finally, in the closing spreads, actions, such as a helping hand. It is these vague and shape-shifting examples of “little things” that leave readers confused for much of the book. Pousette’s detailed and dreamlike mixed-media paper-cut shadowbox illustrations are enchanting, but they do little to unmuddle the text and sometimes even confuse it further. One spread in which the child, who has brown skin, samples a “yummy” strawberry then plants some seeds and then is shown walking among “humongous,” long-stemmed flowers is striking but so fanciful it further muddies the concept of “little things.” Still, several strong passages and accompanying illustrations—especially a striking three-page foldout spread that details the protagonist’s discovery of two fawns that become “great big” deer “eventually”—are indicative of what this convoluted picture book could be had more discipline been given to refining the big idea it tries to convey.
Pretty and well-meant but unsuccessful . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4413-2859-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peter Pauper Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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