An About Face

Throughout our lives, regardless of our age, it's perfectly normal to set, accomplish and shift goals.  We greet each day working to fulfill these ambitions.  And we dream dreams outside of what we see as possible, elaborate ponderings dependent on miracles.  These keep us hopeful.

During these mental, and sometimes vocal deliberations, our closest companions endeavor to help us.  They elevate our hope into the realm of maybe-this-could-be-real.  Cowie (A Paula Wiseman Book, Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers, January 7, 2020) written and illustrated by Elizabeth Rose Stanton is another charming, heartfelt title by a wise and talented woman who has given us Henny, Peddles and Bub.

This is Cowie.

Everyone called him Cowie

because Cowie loved everything about cows.

Their physical attributes and mental view of life were revered by this donkey.  More than anything else, their position in the grass, 

the green, green grass

on their side of the fence,

was cherished by Cowie.  By grazing in the grass, they avoided carrying humans and other goods on their backs.  And they definitely didn't pull any wagons.  

Cowie made up mind.  If he wanted to be a cow, he had to do cow-like things.  He tried several activities, but he still felt more like a donkey than a cow.  Then he tried to say MOO.  Yikes!  It came out backward.  No matter how many times he tried, the sound was reversed.  How does something like this happen?

His two friends, Duckie and Mousie, sensed their friend's sadness.  Their first approach was to speak their sounds in reverse, but this did not make Cowie happier.  They thought maybe something was physically wrong with Cowie.  Everything was checked from bottom to top.  He was A-okay except when he tried to moo again it came out 

OOOOOOOOM.

After a couple of ideas and more attempts, Cowie's two pals knew exactly what to do.  And they did it . . . with considerable effort.  And you, readers, will laugh and laugh and laugh.

When Elizabeth Rose Stanton brings another of her gentle, lovable creatures into our lives, we welcome them willingly.  In the persona of Cowie, we connect with the dilemma of wanting something which seems improbable.  As the reasons for his love of cows are told to us, we understand his desires.  Who among us has not wanted to emulate another, so as to be like them?  As the story progresses with a blend of narrative and conversation, we are utterly surprised and completely delighted with his two friends' resolution.  In fact, it's guaranteed you'll laugh out loud.  Here is a passage.

Out came:

OOOOOM

Everyone stopped chewing

and swishing and mooing

and looked at Cowie.

I am making too much of a donkey of myself, he thought.

I will never be a cow. 

The use of white space as an element in this book is outstanding.  As you can see on the front of the dust jacket, even though the colors of the animals are soft, the white space lifts them up, as it does with the varnished title text. (All the animals are varnished on the front, also.)  To the left, on the back, an interior image from the book has been placed.  It is the scene which accompanies the text previously noted.  All the cows are looking at Cowie with astonishment.  Cowie's back is to readers, as he faces the group of cows.  

The opening and closing endpapers are the same hue of blue as the title text on the front of the dust jacket.  (I am awaiting my hardcopy, so I am working with an F & G.)  Before the verso and title pages, Elizabeth Rose Stanton has placed a cowbell, looped with a pale blue ribbon, in the lower, right-hand corner.  This is a foreshadowing.  The image from the front of the dust jacket appears on the title page.

Rendered in pencil and watercolor, the illustrations are endearing and expressive.  Elizabeth Rose Stanton also adds labels to two of the pictures to place emphasis on Cowie's reasons for loving cows.  Her delicate lines, shading with the colors and facial expressions reveal her skill in using this medium.  Careful readers will notice the inclusion of two previous characters in one of her pictures.

The care given to details is marvelous.  When Cowie is sad, Mousie offers up a daisy and a tiny chick offers him a worm.  When Duckie and Mousie are examining Cowie for any physical problems, Elizabeth Rose Stanton's refreshing sense of humor is seen in this series of images.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is on a single page with a crisp, white background.  Cowie is seated with his red halter hanging to the ground and his red-ribboned tail trailing behind him.  Duckie is seated in front of him with a wing raised in question.  The tiny chick is standing on his tail.  Mousie is on top of Cowie's head with arms raised in triumph with a glowing lightbulb above Mousie's head.  Cowie has his eyes raised up toward Mousie. 

For readers who want a book to hug because they love the characters, one they'll want to read over and over, and one which will make them giggle, Cowie written and illustrated by Elizabeth Rose Stanton is a superb choice.  While we'll not always be who we want to be, good friends can lend a paw or wing to make even our most unlikely dreams a reality.  They'll have to add a healthy dose of silliness to the mix, too.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Elizabeth Rose Stanton and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Elizabeth Rose Stanton has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter.  Enjoy this video interview.

In The Darkening Wood

If you stand perfectly still and wait, wonder comes to you.  As the day ends, twilight descends.  Soon the only light comes from the stars or the moon depending on the date.  A world populated by nocturnal creatures begins to stir.

They call to those in their family and other residents of the forest.  You step into this nighttime realm when reading All ears, all eyes (A Caitlyn Dlouhy Book, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, March 7, 2017) written by Richard Jackson with illustrations by Katherine Tillotson.  The haunting beauty of their words and pictures linger enveloping you.

What sails?
What flies?
Those...these
Down low
nearby
far off...
up high
Who listens?
Who looks?
Who hears?
Who sees? 

These lyrical lines lead us into the woods.  An owl calls and notices two raccoons playing and feasting.  Nearby a prickly porcupine quietly moves as a bat soars above a deer.  If you listen closely, you can hear them.  If you look with careful eyes, you can see them.

Wings rubbing send out chirping.  (Wise listeners can tell the temperature from these sounds.)  Who is barking?  Who is harking?  Fireflies signal on and off, calling out for companionship.

Eyes adjusting to the dark, searching for woodland critters find some and miss others.  The owl continues to hoot.  What messages are being sent?  A lone tree frog replies with a familiar song.

The wind of the day calms but then starts again, pushing branches and leaves with unseen fingers.  All forest life is wide awake alternately moving and still, quiet and loud.  Good night.


Not silent but comforting are the words written by Richard Jackson.  We explore with eyes wide open and ears tuned to the music only heard at night.  Words rhyme.  Lines are brimming with alliteration and onomatopoeia.  As the animals go about their activities and communicate they remind us to rest easy.  Here is another passage.

What scoots
between roots?
All ears
a bat flies,
wings whirring

as light falls
and night rises.


Looking at the fox running through the deep forest falling into darkness under the watchful eyes of the owl and framed in the text is like an open doorway into this book.  The design choices are superb as are the selected hues.  To the left, on the back, of the matching dust jacket and book case is a large portion of white, a place for interior text.  Above it is a portion of the woods.  On the opening endpapers, in the same crisp white, a scattering of leaves drift from the upper left-hand corner to the lower portion of the right side.  Fewer leaves lift upward on a background of darkness and shining stars on the closing endpapers.

The introductory lines prior to the title, verso and dedication pages appear on a continuation of white with leaves and several birds in flight.  They are the remnants of day as the sun sets.  On the title page we step back with a more panoramic view of the woods before the verso and dedication pages which follow.

The illustrations rendered using a combination of watercolor and digital techniques by Katherine Tillotson all span two pages in breathtaking splendor.  They flow taking our eyes from left to right.  Leaves either frame or take center stage in all of them, further connecting each image to the next one.  The color combinations, greens, blues and purples, deep golden yellow and orange with purple and brown, an array of greens, pinks, blues and purples and more are gorgeous.  The method of layering asks us to pause after each page turn to savor the words and pictures.

One of my favorite of all the images features a canopy of leaves across the top in purples, blues and greens, some of them drifting down the right side.  Several tree trunks are highlighted in the foreground.  An owl is perched on a branch on the left.  A bat floats overhead as the fox continues to run.  A mouse sits quietly on a branch on the right side.  And nestled on the forest floor is a design close to my heart.  Can you see it?  I wonder if there are others.


Peace will settle over your soul as you read All ears, all eyes written by Richard Jackson with illustrations by Katherine Tillotson.  It takes us gently by the hand through the forest blanketed with the night.  I highly recommend this for your professional and personal bookshelves.  Read it aloud whenever you can with love; for surely this is how the words were penned and the artwork created.

To discover more about Katherine Tillotson and her other work please visit her website by following the link attached to her name. At the publisher's website you can view interior images.  This is one of the titles showcased by author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.  Deborah Kalb interviews Katherine Tillotson on her blog and Katherine Tillotson appears on Kathy Temean: Writing and Illustrating.   Bookology has an interview with Richard Jackson and Katherine Tillotson.