A Cloak Of Comfort

Even a casual observer will notice the abundance of blankets in my home.  A collector of warmth and comfort abides within this space.  Several of them are gifts from treasured friends.  Stories are woven in them.

As children we know there is something about burrowing under the cover of a blanket to read a book by flashlight when everyone else is sleeping. In her first wordless picture book, Blanket (Groundwood Books, House of Anansi Press, August 2, 2022), Ruth Ohi tells a tender tale of the kindness extended from one friend to another friend.  True friends can look into our hearts and know exactly what they need.

One sunny morning with a trio of birds chirping outside the window, Cat wakes up.  The blue sky and happy birds cannot drive away the worry and sadness Cat feels.  Cat climbs off the bed and pulls the blanket along and completely covers their body.  There is a blue lump on the floor when Dog walks into the room.

Dog, book in hand, sits on the floor near the blue lump and begins to read.  The blue lump moves closer to Dog for a snuggle.  Dog begins to talk.  Soon the blanket lifts and Dog crawls inside with Cat.  Cat talks and talks and Dog listens and listens.

Then, Dog supplies Cat with a flashlight.  The two play and Cat seems to be better until Dog leaves and does not come back fast enough.  Dog has the best idea, though.  The duo make an open-air tent, a canopy, with the blanket and two chairs.

As you might expect, the fun escalates.  There is shadow puppetry.  When Dog wants to leave again, Cat is distressed, but Dog is a reassuring companion, the best kind of companion.  What do you think Cat does in Dog's absence?  Cat is remembering.  Dog remembers, too.  A blanket can be many things.

This story told without words by Ruth Ohi is beautifully conceived.  It is an expression of shared sorrows being halved and shared joys being multiplied.  It shows readers the many forms friendship can take.  Using the blanket as the unifying component of the tale is brilliant.  Readers of all ages can readily identify, based upon their own experiences, with the value of a blanket.

There is a feeling of sanctuary in the scene with Cat and Dog on the front, right side, of the matching dust jacket and book case.  Kneeling under the blanket, head to head, the two are one in the affection they hold for each other.  This image extends over the spine.  To the left of the spine is a crisp white canvas.  Two of the featured birds are flying left to right across the top. (The third bird is on the back flap.)  In the center is a drawing of Cat, looking a bit lost, on a piece of paper with a few crayons nearby.  Above this, in an arc, we read:

How much difference can a friend make on a gray day?

Both the opening and closing endpapers are shaded in hues of gray and purple to signify Cat's morning mood.  On the page prior to the title page, Cat, lying on their stomach, is drawing a picture.  Edge to edge, across the verso and title pages is the blue blanket.

These illustrations by Ruth Ohi are loosely framed and placed on a white background.  They are full-page pictures, two images to a single page, and dramatic double-page visuals.  Sometimes smaller images will be grouped on a page to denote the passage of time.  We are usually close to the characters, making for a more intimate reading of the narrative.

The use of color depicts the current mood of the characters.  Facial expressions are realistic and easy to understand.  These facial expressions bind us to the characters.  Ruth Ohi's lines and light and shading are marvelous.

One of my many favorite illustrations is actually a trio of images on a single page.  In the first one, the blue lump, Cat under the blanket, has moved right next to Dog.  Dog, eyes closed in contentment, leans next to the blanket.  The book is temporarily on the floor.  In the second visual, Dog is turning toward the blanket, speaking and holding the book open.  In the final picture, the blue lump has moved even closer to Dog as the book is read aloud.

If there were a category of huggable books, Blanket conceived and illustrated by Ruth Ohi, would be at the top of the list.  This story without words speaks volumes about the importance of friendship on any day.  As a story time title with a group, sighs will fill the room at its conclusion.  If you are reading this one-on-one, be sure to have enough blankets for snuggling and a shelter.  I highly recommend this book for your personal and professional collections.  It would make a wonderful gift.

To learn more about Ruth Ohi and her other work, please visit her website by following the links attached to her name.  Ruth Ohi has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.  At the publisher's website, you can view interior images.

When Human Eyes Are Absent

In winter, their presence is easily noticed.  New snow is patterned with paths made by their prints.  They burrow and scoop out shelter under and among landscaping to stay warm during the chilly nights.  They dine on any available edible.

For the most part, they move in silence in any season when humans are tucked inside their homes asleep.  What they do after their essential needs are met is not as easily identified.  The impressions left in the snow, mud or dirt, sometimes indicate playful antics.  The Midnight Fair (Candlewick Press, February 2, 2021) written (conceived) by Gideon Sterer with illustrations by Mariachiara Di Giorgio is a marvelous wordless story of an extraordinary nighttime adventures of forest animals.  

As clouds gather and sunset casts a golden glow, a caravan rolls into a large meadow bordered by woodlands.  Behind the trees and tall grass, animals gather and watch.  The rides and concession stands are quickly assembled.  In darkness lights, loud noises, and laughter fill the air.  From the shadows, the animals still watch.

After the attendees and caretaker leave, the only light is from the glowing eyes of animals cautiously walking from the forest and entering the fair.  Clever climbing raccoons pull the main electricity lever.  The fair comes alive . . . again.

Spinning, swinging, and bumping rides are ridden, confections and snacks are consumed, and games are played and won.  Music floats up, down, and around.  Not a word is spoken, but every creature is finding fun.

All too soon, the sky in the east lightens, proclaiming the upcoming sunrise.  At the fair, the excitement lessens, and clean-up begins.  At home, the caretaker gets ready for his day, arriving as others slip away.  In the softness of dawn, there are suspicious surprises for the caretaker, and rejoicing and much-needed rest for the animals of the forest.  This tale has one, wonderful final twist. 

As the narrative unfolds author Gideon Sterer takes readers slowly from curiosity to cunning, and then to sustained elation until the break of dawn.  In this story, we shed what we think we know about animals, replacing it with an enormous imaginative leap.  The manner in which Gideon Sterer presents the events during this midnight magic resonates universally.  It reaches all readers; for who among us has not been enchanted by the dream of one transformative night?

This book with these images created by Mariachiara Di Giorgio is to be savored over and over, pausing to study each one.  Look carefully at the front, right, of the matching dust jacket and book case.  The starry constellations, outlines of buildings, tents, and rides at the fair, in the background have formed an enchanting place.  The music from the carousel floats out into the night air as animals from the forest ride and watch.  Who wouldn't want to be there with them? (The outlines, title text and entire carousel display are varnished on the front.)

To the left, on the back, the pinpoint outlines continue as a full moon peeks out from behind a tree on the left.  Silhouettes of animals in a line stretch from the TICKETS booth, as a resident wild canine accepts payment.  The opening and closing endpapers figure prominently in the pictorial interpretation of this story.  On the first set the open meadow is filling with the caravan of trucks each carrying fair equipment.  Behind a row of trees and grass in the foreground animals watch.  The final set of endpapers has the same illustration except now the meadow is nearly empty and only a portion of one trailer is visible, vanishing on the left.

The artwork for this book was rendered

in watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil.

These mediums portray a realm in eloquent detail, textured and inviting.  The double page illustration for the verso and title pages continues the story with the setup of the fair as the animals gaze at the activity in secret.  Mariachiara Di Giorgio uses a series of panels framed in white lines to supply pacing.  Two square images might be paired with a horizontal picture on a single page or two horizontal images might be spread across two pages together, one on top of the other.  Double-page pictures provide readers with gasp-worthy scenes like when the fair, now back to life, is spread before the animals as they enter or when we look down on animals spinning in saucers.  Every element in these visuals is worthy of study, humor is highly evident.  You'll note the raccoons working to turn on the main switch, the method of payment used by the animals, the porcupine with sweet treats stuck to its quills, and the animals riding the roller coaster, arms in the air as it cascades down.

There is also a story within the story here.  Without disclosing too much, careful readers will watch as a wolf wins a particular prize at the ring toss.  We see him throughout the illustrations, still holding his reward.  Remember when it was mentioned we need to suspend what we think we know about animals?  

One of my many, many favorite pictures is when the animals are watching humans at the fair on this opening night.  In the bright, but muted, lights the midway spreads across two pages.  In much darker colors, shadows, leaves, berries and seeds border the top and the right side in the foreground.  On the right a raccoon is gathering branches and stems, pinecones, and mushrooms.  From the left side a bear is watching.  Next to the bear are two rabbits (hares) with only their ears visible from the bottom of the page.  They are all waiting.  These animals are very close to the reader.

In case you have ever wondered what wild animals do when humans are not present, this book, The Midnight Fair written (conceived) by Gideon Sterer with artwork by Mariachiara Di Giorgio, is a gorgeous window into possibility.  This story and every illustration ask readers to participate and enjoy each moment.  You will want to have this breathtaking, inventive book in your professional collections as well as on your personal bookshelves.  This title is one you will want to share often, gifting it so others can find joy in its magic.

To learn more about Gideon Sterer and Mariachiara Di Giorgio, please follow the link attached to their names to access their respective websites.  Gideon Sterer has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  Mariachiara Di Giorgio has an account on Facebook.  This book is featured at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast by author, reviewer, and blogger Julie Danielson.  Mariachiara Di Giorgio is highlighted at Let's Talk Picture Books in a 2017 interview by Mel Schuit.

A Fresh Point Of View

During a story time when you share a wordless picture book with children, they lean even closer to you to look at the illustrations.  They know each line, each color, each facial expression, and each element in each scene is essential and valuable. When you've read it once, your listeners will ask for it to be read again.  Then, after the second reading, the questions, discussion, and answers begin in earnest. 

Sometimes after the questions, discussion, and answers, your listeners will ask for it to be read a third time. (If you, the reader, happen to be sitting in a chair, this is when you move to sit among the children.)  This third reading signals the very real impact, the mark on their hearts, this book made.  Over The Shop (Candlewick Press, January 5, 2021) written (conceived) by JonArno Lawson with illustrations by Qin Leng is a wordless examination of human souls.  It is a poignant presentation showing us single acts of kindness can change not only our world but the lives of those around us.

Inside Lowell's General Store, in the living quarters on the ground floor, a new day begins.  A little girl wakes up, joins her grandparent for breakfast, and later her grandparent sets out produce in front of the shop.  As the child does the breakfast dishes, she notices a stray cat, a cat who tries to steal produce from the grandparent, run into the alley.  Quietly and alone, the little girl takes a bowl of food into the alley for the cat.

As the little girl colors and draws, her grandparent makes an Apartment For Rent sign.  It is hung in the front store window.  Over and over again, people, male and female, single or together, one with a dog, come to look at the apartment.  All leave quickly in disgust.  The apartment is in major disrepair.  Discouraged the grandparent removes the sign from the window, but not before a young interracial couple see it.

At first, the grandparent is hesitant to rent to this couple, but the granddaughter offers a positive opinion.  The grateful couple move in and get right to work, cleaning, removing boards from across windows, and repairing damage.  The granddaughter willingly helps.  The neighborhood pigeons and the stray cat observe these welcome alterations.

Seasons pass and more differences inside and outside the shop and apartment are seen.  The definition of family is beautifully portrayed in the final images on the final pages.  The last double-page picture, the last pictorial words of the story, depict the best side of humans, friendship, and family.

From the imaginative mind of JonArno Lawson, readers see threads of several stories unfold only to be woven into a tapestry of a more profound tale.  The characters in this story, the neighbor, the grandparent, the granddaughter, the stray cat, the various possible renters, and the final couple who reside in the second-floor apartment all have stories, individual personalities revealed to readers.  In this book JonArno Lawson tells us how generations can be bridged, how the youngest among us is sometimes the wisest, how being willing to shift a perspective can lead to joy, and how kindness heals and builds the most wonderful life possible.

When you open the matching dust jacket and book case and look at the front and back, right and left, of them, you are not initially aware of the ultimate significance of this title.  You see a little girl and an older woman beginning their day in a local grocery shop.  You do notice the cat and the resident pigeons.  

On the back are three separate images under the words:

APARTMENT FOR RENT.

INQUIRE WITHIN.

In these three illustrations we meet the final couple wanting to rent the apartment.  The granddaughter speaks on their behalf.  And the grandparent has to decide what to do.

On the opening and closing endpapers the majority of the two pages are devoted to a morning sky first and an evening sky second.  On the first pigeons are coming to roost on the roof of the shop.  The cat is crawling up to the peak of the roof on the opposite side.  On the closing endpapers, the cat is gone, and the pigeons are curled in sleep.  To continue the opening endpapers, the verso and title pages show the cat leaping at the pigeons as they scatter in flight off the roof.  

Rendered 

in ink and watercolor

by Qin Leng, these visuals are awash in emotion.  They depict realistic settings with everyday people.  They bring readers into the story.  Their alternating sizes and groupings on the pages elevate the pacing.  Each line detail, brush stroke, and color choice contribute to our participation in this story as readers. 

One of my many, many favorite pictures is on a full page.  We are looking slightly down at the scene.  It shows the grocery shop, the neighbor's home to the left, and the other building on the right side of the alley.  The neighbor is watching the new tenants, carrying luggage, walk toward the shop.  The grandparent is walking into the store.  The granddaughter is waving at the new couple.  The couple are smiling as one of them waves back.  There is much potential and hope in this illustration.

This book, Over The Shop written by JonArno Lawson with illustrations by Qin Leng, is one of those titles you will long remember.  This story is to be shared often and widely. It asks us to be our best in every choice we make.  It asks you to leave beauty wherever you walk.  You will want to have a copy in your personal collections and one on your professional bookshelves.

If you wish to learn more about JonArno Lawson, I recommend you read about him at the Poetry Foundation.  To learn more about Qin Leng and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Qin Leng has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter.  At Penguin Random House you can view interior images.  At author, reviewer, and blogger Julie Danielson's Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast, this title is highlighted.

Fifty Years Of Energy and Efforts For Mother Earth

For fifty years it's been the same date every year.  On April 22, 2020 around our planet Earth Day celebrations are going digital for the first time in its history.  A host of prominent people are participating.  The organizers promise to

flood the world with messages of hope, optimism and, above all---action.

Numerous recent publications shine a light on the means for all of us to make a difference in our natural world.  We need not do anything grand.  Even the smallest endeavor can bring about change.  We must engage with our world because it depends on us, all of us.

From a true story comes The Bear's Garden (Imprint, a part of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC, March 24, 2020) written by Marcie Colleen with illustrations by Alison Oliver.  Through the imagination of a child a dream takes shape.  Through an accident and efforts of many, this dream becomes a reality.

IN THE BIG, BUSTLING CITY, all the people were busy.

They did not see the neglected buildings, but a little girl did.  To her they offered opportunity.  To her they were an invitation to grow, play and love.  This child made her own beauty.

Planting seeds in an old tomato can, she and her stuffed toy bear nourished tiny sprouts. The can placed on her windowsill, provided sun and fresh air to the plants.  One day, a bird flew by, knocking the can to the ground beneath her apartment window.  It rolled and rolled right across the street.

In the vacant lot where the can rested, those small plants grew.  The child cared for them with water and her affectionate heart.  She talked to them, giving them encouraging words.  Those busy people soon noticed the little girl and her plants.  

When the girl had to leave, she worried about what would happen to her garden. She left her bear, loaded with hugs, to act as guardian.  The single act of a generous spirit bloomed in her absence.  Upon her return, she and her bear were surrounded by beautiful bounty.

To begin author Marcie Colleen gives us a broad overview of the city and then leads us to a single child whose outlook is in contrast to many others.  Simple sentences build toward an astonishing conclusion.  We become more invested in the story with the use of dialogue when the little girl voices her thoughts.  Her faith in her stuffed toy bear (and life in general) as presented in the narrative is endearing and enduring.  Here is a passage.

One night, the girl's imagination

spilled onto the sidewalk, 

rolled across the street,

and sprouted.

The scene on the front of the dust jacket gives a close view of the child and her bear enjoying the beauty the garden is offering to them.  Their eyes closed in contentment present a calming representation.  The sky and clouds continue over the spine to the left, the back of the jacket.  There the garden continues with buildings in the background.  The title text on the front is embossed in foil.  The little girl, her stuffed toy bear and some of the leaves and blossoms are varnished.

On the book case, the position of the girl and her stuffed toy bear are the same but everything else is different.  Their eyes are wide open in cheer.  The garden is bursting with color and blooms spreading over the spine to the left at the back.  In a word, it's joy.

On the opening endpapers is an aerial view of this New York City area with a pin placed where the garden is.  The bear's face is on the pin.  On the closing endpapers the visual is enhanced and closer.  Multiple gardens are shown.  This closer view is also shown on the verso and title pages, but no gardens are visible yet.

These illustrations rendered by Alison Oliver using 

marker, pencil, brush pen, charcoal, cut paper, and Photoshop

depict varying perspectives, a bird's eye view, multiple moments grouped in a two-page picture or in four separate wordless frames.  They span two pages and single pages.  Black as a background is used to fabulous effect.

The personality of the little girl shines on every page through her facial expression and body postures. The portrayal of the bear is vivid to the extent you expect it to come to life.  The bond between the child and the toy is as real as any human relationship.  

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is on a single page.  The little girl is seated near the tiny plants, the can tipped to spill them and now planted in soil.  Near her is an empty cardboard box with a black kitten inside.  On top of the box is a teapot.  In front of her toy stuffed bear, a tiny mouse, a pigeon and the plants are teacups.  The girl, smiling, is holding a teacup, ready to sip.  It's a garden party.

This book, The Bear's Garden written by Marcie Colleen with illustrations by Alison Oliver, is brimming with hope.  It's certain to inspire others to begin community gardens.  At the close of the book an Author's Note explains the garden which sparked this story.  I highly recommend this title for both your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Marcie Colleen and Alison Oliver and their other work, please follow the links attached to their names to access their respective websites.  At Alison Oliver's website you can view the endpapers and interior images.  Marcie Colleen has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  Alison Oliver has accounts on Facebook and Instagram.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images.  Marcie Colleen is featured at The Children's Book Podcast with Matthew Winner.  She and this book are also highlighted by Debbie Ridpath Ohi at her website, Inkygirl.  Please enjoy this peek at the book case courtesy of Let's Talk Picture Books.

The Bear's Garden by Marcie Colleen and Alison Oliver from Let's Talk Picture Books on Vimeo.



Although in northern Michigan at the moment snow is swirling in high winds, for months collective minds here and in other parts of the world have been turning to gardening. Seeds and soil have been gathered.  On warmer days, walks have revealed shoots from bulbs pushing through the dirt and perennials are starting to turn green as buds get larger.  In My Garden (Neal Porter Books, Holiday House, March 24, 2020) written by the late Charlotte Zolotow (1915-2013) with illustrations by Philip Stead is a journey through the seasons.  It is a shared trip through time and the offerings Nature bestows on all of us if we choose to notice.

IN THE SPRING what I love best in my garden
are the birds building nests.

As the narrator chats with us, she quickly relates other things about the garden for which she has affection; things like tulips, violets and other seasonal blooms. There is also one thing, above all others, which is enjoyed the most.  This is kite flying.  It is not the only thing done, but it is the best.

Other flowers take the center stage in the summer.  Among the most prized are roses of all colors.  Lunching under the pear tree is one of the narrator's greatest pleasures in the summer.  Birdsong, gliding butterflies and dips in a stream provide other delights.

In autumn, leaves shifting from green to an array of colors and animals collecting food for winter are observations appreciated, but the chrysanthemums are the narrator's favorite part of this season in their garden.  There is also an assortment of activities to like in the fall but raking leaves is number one on the list.  JUMP!

When the garden is covered with snow, sculpting different shapes, this is the best part of the season.  Of all the outdoor pursuits during these blustery months, ice skating upon the frozen pond is simply the best.  Gliding on this watery world offers time for reflection and appreciation.


Each time the words written by Charlotte Zolotow for this book are read, their timeless quality envelopes you.  You are wrapped in the narrator's respect for each sensory impression.  You experience on a personal level each thing done.  A repetition of certain phrases creates a calmly cadence.  With her words, Charlotte Zolotow transports you to the garden.  Here is another passage.

In the spring what I love most to do is fly kites.
     Of course there are other things I
love to do---play dolls and roller skate
and skip rope.


What readers first notice about the open and matching dust jacket and book case, are the two figures under the pear tree in the garden.  This introduces us to the visual interpretation of Charlotte Zolotow's words by Philip Stead.  The bird resting on the E in the title is a nod to the first line in the story.  The red tulips refer to the next lines of the story.  This entire scene on the right, front, is one of participants standing in a sanctuary.

To the left, on the back, poetic words are framed in a circle of flowers, leaves and colors of the four seasons.  Two more birds are featured prominently in a blend of blue, yellow and purple.  On the opening and closing endpapers a soft shade of purple has been placed.

On the initial title page, a bird rests on the letter E.  For the formal title page and verso, a cat is perched on a stone wall stretching from left to right across both pages.  Bright yellow rays shine from the upper right-hand corner as green and purple shade the area on the right.

This artwork by Philip Stead is

handmade using oil-ink monotype techniques and carbon transfer printing.

Each illustration spanning two pages is a study in perspective, design and color.  We are given larger views and then brought closer to individual settings.  We look straight at a scene or peer down from above.  We are participants and observers.  One double-page picture during spring and winter are wordless but convey the essence of the narrator's words.

One of my many, many favorite images is the one for the first sentence of this story.  On the left, along the bottom a shade of pale green shifts to spring green before it crosses the gutter.  In the first green are three birds, gathering twigs for a nest.  One red tulip stands tall on the left side of the gutter.  To the right of the gutter two other red tulips behind a birdhouse on the ground frame it.  Two birds are in front of the birdhouse and a third is on the roof.  The spring green hue changes to yellow as it moves up the page.  On the far right a tree truck extends off the page.  Another bird is leaning out from the trunk, twigs in its beak.  The birdhouse is palest green with purple and yellow.


Regardless of your age or the time of day, In My Garden written by Charlotte Zolotow with illustrations by Philip Stead will supply your soul with much needed serenity.  Philip Stead's artwork elevates the stunning rhythm of Charlotte Zolotow's poetic perceptions.  This book has my highest recommendation for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Charlotte Zolotow and Philip Stead and their other work, please access their websites by following the links attached to their names.  Philip Stead has another site with information titled The Stead Collection.  An article at Publishers Weekly addresses the reissue of Charlotte Zolotow's book with Philip Stead's artwork.  At author and teacher librarian Travis Jonker's blog, 100 Scope Notes, at School Library Journal, a video highlights how Philip Stead made the artwork for this book.  At the publisher's website there is a link to an Educator's Guide for this title.



In his newest brilliant artistic entry in children literature, author illustrator Henry Cole does not disappoint.  The conception and illustration of One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey (Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., April 7, 2020) is a wordless display of transformation.  It is a loving tribute to people, their lives and their love of each other and our Earth.

Prior to the title page, Henry Cole in a series of framed single-page pictures, horizontal and vertical panels and two large double-page pictures, takes us through the process of making paper from logged timber to large rolls of paper to the delivery of boxes of paper bags and to the use of a single bag at a small community market. We follow one particular tree through the use of spot color as it makes its way from the forest, to a logging truck, to the paper mill, the processes at the mill, and the packing of one paper bag among hundreds in a box.  The final two-page image before the title page is an amazing display of the interior of a small grocery store highly stocked with all kinds of items.  People walk on wooden floors with carts laden with their groceries.  At the counter is a boy and his father and the brown-colored paper bag.

The father, having drawn a red heart on the bag, uses it as a lunch bag for his son's school meal.  After a nightmare, the bag is used to mute a flashlight as comfort next to the child's bed.  As the boy grows up the bag is always present, used for a variety of purposes.  When he leaves for college, the bag goes with him.

His musical gift for guitar playing attracts the attention of another guitar-playing individual, a young woman.  The bag holds rolled up music. As they study together during college and enjoy outings with each other the bag is nearby.  The young woman draws another heart on the bag prior to the young man's proposal of marriage.

As the two journey through their shared lives, the bag's presence is noted.  At the birth of their son, another heart appears on the bag attached to the baby's bed.  When the new boy's grandfather visits, readers will know it is the first boy.  Years pass, memories are made by the grandfather and his grandson and another heart is added.  The bag's final use after decades is poetic, purposeful and perfect.


In his dedication Henry Cole states:

TO MY MOM

WHO INSPIRED THIS STORY,

TO ALL THOSE

WHO PACK LUNCHES EVERY DAY,

AND TO THOSE

WHO ALWAYS CARRY REUSABLE BAGS.

Each carefully visualized image, rendered using

Micron ink pens on Strathmore Bristol paper

by Henry Cole is an ode to our forests, trees, paper, paper bags and recycling.  It also addresses the abiding love of family and the nearness of the bag in some of the simplest but most memorable moments of his characters' lives.  The black and white illustrations with only spot color of brown and red are exquisitely detailed and highly emotional in their portrayals.

On the open and matching dust jacket and book case, we are presented with two points of view.  On the front, the bag is introduced to us through the boy and his father as they shop in the local market.  To the left, on the back, a doe peers from behind the trunk of a large tree among a stand of large trees, their tops not visible to us.  The forest floor is carpeted with grass and wildflowers.  A single butterfly sips at one of the flowers.

On the opening and closing endpapers the view of the woodlands is expanded.  The doe is still present on the far left.  A flock of turkeys cautiously moves through the trees on the right.  The tree which becomes the bag is the only bit of color in this black and white artwork.

Each page turn is a revelation of the tree's and bag's journey.  To accentuate pacing the picture sizes vary as does their point of view.  We move from a single-page picture to a series of four smaller pictures on the opposite page as we step back farther and farther.  Henry Cole's placement of smaller pictures on one or two pages is intentional as is the placement of the bag in each image.

The characters' facial features and body postures supply readers with a range of emotions.  The settings in which they are shown contribute to the personal involvement of readers in this story.  We are there with the characters in each situation.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is when the original boy, now a grandfather, is walking with his grandson.  It is a single-page picture, page edge to page edge.  They are walking on a path in the forest.  Their backs are to us.  They are holding hands.  The grandfather on the left is using a cane to aid his walking.  The family cat follows along on the boy's right.  He holds the bag, now bearing four hearts, in his right hand.  As we look ahead of the duo, through the trees, Henry Cole has placed a glow, a lightening.

This book, One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey conceived and illustrated by Henry Cole, is as they say in the children's literature community, a heartprint book.  It will leave a mark on your heart.  This story and the characters will remain in your mind long after the book is finished.  It will cause you to pause in the future, reflecting on its intelligent message so marvelously delivered.  At the close of the book in an Author's Note, Henry Cole speaks about his personal story and the premise for writing this story.  I can't imagine any collection of books without a copy of this title.

To learn more about Henry Cole and his other work, please follow the link attached to his name to access his personal website.  Henry Cole has accounts on Facebook and Twitter.  The cover reveal for this book is at Nerdy Book Club.  Henry Cole is interviewed about this title at The Horn Book and Publishers Weekly.

Our rewards from Nature are proportionate to the attention we give it.  The more we look, the more we see.  Every detail is a delightful discovery.

In her newest release, A New Green Day (Neal Porter Books, Holiday House, April 14, 2020), Antoinette Portis asks us to think about alternate descriptions for that which is familiar.  Through her words and illustrations, magic happens.

"Morning lays me on your pillow, an invitation, square and warm.

Come out and play!"

Who is speaking in these first two sentences?  With a page turn we realize we have been welcomed to participate in a guessing game with elements found in Nature.  Sunlight is talking first.

We are asked to follow a doodle on a path and a map within a home.  What we hold in our hand, can act as a measuring tape.  A newborn in a nearby stream is a form of punctuation, a pause before adulthood.

A pebble is a sweet delicacy if a river is the taster.  Is there a mountain that can move toward you?  This answer will surprise you.  It is usually a prelude to 

"I'm a chorus 

of a million tiny voices. . . ."

and several more wondrous riddles which follow.

Other apt descriptions have you searching your mind for answers as you put the clues together.  As the summer day comes to a close, a final voice calls to sleepers.  It's a reminder of what we have seen and what we have yet to see.

Using lyrical but carefully chosen words, author Antoinette Portis, presents two-sentence puzzles for readers to ponder.  She requests of readers to contemplate beyond our initial thoughts allowing us to witness beauty we might otherwise miss. Fourteen poems following a similar premise lead us to a new appreciation of our world.  

The amazing shades of green which light up trees, shrubs and plants as spring turns to summer move from the right, front, to the left, back, of the open and matching dust jacket and book case.  The garland of leaves extends from flap edge to flap edge on the jacket.  Placing them on a crisp white background gives them a special glow.  We are introduced to the character who proceeds through the summer day on the front of the jacket and case.  The title text on the jacket is varnished.

On the opening and closing endpapers and the first and last page turn are brush strokes, looking somewhat like marble.  They are in various shades of green. Prior to the title page, on white, is a single tiny cricket.  Across the two pages given for the title are five different leaves, all in green hues.

The initial two sentences of each poem are placed in a colorful but muted square on white.  For the answer to the poem, a full-page picture is offered.  These illustrations rendered by Antoinette Portis 

using brush and sumi ink, leaf prints, vine charcoal and hand-stamped lettering with color added digitally,

supply readers with different points of view.  We stand next to a sleeping child. We are at eye level with a snail.  We see an enlarged tadpole as if we are with it in a stream.  We watch from the safety of a neighborhood of homes as lightning slices into a tree.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is for the answer to the first riddle poem.  Below the words

says sunlight

the little girl, one pigtail spread across her pillow, sleeps with her face turned away from readers, to the left.  Her red top provides a contrast to the white pillow with shadows and the green of her blanket.  As sunlight comes in through the window, we see outlines of leaves on a tree outside her home on her blanket and top.  A new day is gently beginning.

Inspiring and hopeful, A New Green Day written and illustrated by Antoinette Portis is a book to read repeatedly.  It celebrates our planet and elements large and small found everywhere.  It requires us to think.  It encourages us to see the magic in the ordinary.  Perhaps we can write our own puzzle poems.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Antoinette Portis, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Antoinette Portis has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  At the publisher's website there is a link to an Educator's Guide.

Never has it been more apparent than the beginning of 2020 how vital the outside world is to all living things.  We humans, if not previously so appreciative, are now.  We recognize the value of embracing what has been so freely present.  The urgency of preserving and protecting it is heightened.  

In their first collaboration author Deborah Underwood and illustrator Cindy Derby work to show readers the allure of what we find beyond the four walls of our homes.  Outside In (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, April 14, 2020) looks at the benefits of becoming one with the world around us.  It awakens memories of the past bringing it to the present.

ONCE

we were part of Outside

and Outside was part of us.

There was nothing between us.

This has changed considerably.  Now, even when we venture to the Outside, we do so enclosed in another form of Inside.  Our recollections of 

ONCE

are clouded.

The most important thing to remember is that Outside has not forgotten.  It tugs at those murky memories.  It does so with bursts of color and growth.  

The sunlight streaming through a window is a reminder.  Birdsong is a reminder.  Twigs brushing on rooftops are a reminder.  Outside is calling to us through our senses.

If we stop to think about it, Outside is responsible for our care.  It gives us food.  It gives us clothing.  It gives us shelter.  It brings itself to the Inside when we hug and cuddle our dogs and cats.

Outside is a clock.  We mark our days with light and darkness.  Sometimes Outside sneaks in through tiny creatures.  It might race through pipes only to return from where it came.  Outside implores us.  Will we respond?

A lilting rhythm in the words written by Deborah Underwood recalls a collective time in our consciousness.  A very personal connection is fashioned by having Outside become a character in the story.  The examples of Outside reminding us are always present for us to experience, but in Deborah Underwood's stellar use of language, they are enchanting.  They cast a spell and we willingly allow it to work.  Here are two sentences.

It beckons with smells:

sunbaked,

fresh,

and mysterious.

Outside cuddles us

in clothes,

once puffs of cotton.

The open dust jacket for this book is entirely varnished.  Small portions of the images on the left, back, and the right, front, bleed to the flaps.  The glorious display of Outside as presented on the front with the girl and her cat walking from Inside is uplifting and comforting.  You will find yourself pausing to look at all the details embedded in this illustration (and in all the illustrations throughout the book.)  The play of light and shadow is outstanding.  On the back the Outside opens from the bottom and slightly left like a beautiful blossom.  The blend of greens and blues is luminous.

On the book case moving from the deep blue hues on the left and over the spine to the right, we are drawn to a doorway.  Light streams in through the opening.  As we gaze through the doorway, we see, with anticipation, the Outside.

On the opening and closing endpapers in brush strokes of green on white, Outside calls to us.  Swirls of leaves, branches and tiny creatures greet our eyes.  A page turn at the beginning and end reveal green on green and a cluster of evergreens.  On the initial title page, the child, standing on a pathway, is looking back at the Outside.  On the double-page picture for the formal title page, she is now seated on a large tree branch enjoying the Outside spread before her.

Each image, rendered

with watercolor and powdered graphite on cold press paper

by artist Cindy Derby, mirrors an affection for Outside and the words by Deborah Underwood. 

Some of the lines were created with dried flower stems and thread soaked in ink.

Although the colors are bright and bold, as are the pictures they disclose, there is a soft texture about each one.  All the visuals span two pages or single pages.  To accentuate the text, perspective is shifted, sometimes within a single image. 

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is a two-page picture.  The little girl's body is resting on the floor, her head on the left and the rest of her body is on the left, crossing the gutter and her feet are stretching nearly to the right edge. Her eyes are closed as her body curls around the sleeping and curled form of her dog.  Lying on top of her, eyes closed, is her black cat. The cat is on the right.  The girl's top, a mix of red, blue and orange highlights her form and the forms of her dog and cat.  This picture of the Outside is not only universal but happening more often in our current world circumstances.  

This book, Outside In written by Deborah Underwood with illustrations by Cindy Derby, is to be read and shared often.  I expect you will receive requests of read it again.  It restores our ties to the Outside.  It is a balm, a treasure, for a craving we sometimes can't identify.  You'll want to have a copy of this title for your personal and professional bookshelves.

To learn more about Deborah Underwood and Cindy Derby and their other work, links attached to their names allow you to access their respective websites.  Deborah Underwood has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  Cindy Derby has accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Author, reviewer and blogger Julie Danielson showcases this book and the artwork of Cindy Derby on her blog, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.  Enjoy the recent video below made by Cindy Derby where she demonstrates how she made some of the art for this book.

A Floral Fantasy

In the spring, most of the summer and sometimes in the autumn, they are frequent visitors.  They reside in clusters or create a carpet.  Many believe there is magic attached to them.  They can be said to be predictors of wealth, grant wishes and bring joy.  It is a fact they are used as food and in beverages and for medicinal purposes.

The dandelion was named for its jagged-edge leaves; dent de lion translates to lion's tooth.  In her author illustrator debut, Dandelion's Dream (Candlewick Press, February 11, 2020), Yoko Tanaka broadens this word origin with her wondrous wordless story.  What if you, an individual dandelion in a field of dandelions, burst forth not as a blossom but a real lion?

Total disbelief fills your mind at this turn of natural events.  Then, as you gaze at your four paws and lion's body, you dash away to explore. With a leap of faith and fantasy, you ride on the lamp of a train engine.  The view is breathtaking.

Unfortunately, a gust of wind tumbles you from that perch, but fortunately you land on the back of a woolly sheep whose herd is headed toward the sea.  High in the rigging of a sailing ship, you lift your face and mane to the sun.  A kindly bird offers a wing as an umbrella when raindrops fall.

After docking at a large city, the hustle and bustle of the streets is daunting and frightening.  Gleaming lights lead to a delicious treat, and a cinematic idea fills your mind.  Your imagination takes flight until you find yourself coming full circle.  But, wait . . .

A full moon and aging companions offer one final episode in this adventure.  You join others.  You ascend to fulfill your dream.


This story by Yoko Tanaka is brilliant in conception and completion.  It's not only of the flower becoming a real lion but of the interconnectedness between each incident.  There is a flawless flow from one form of transportation to another.  There is also a beautiful blend of that which is made by human hands and that which is solely a part of the natural world.


Using a limited color palette Yoko Tanaka fashions a memorable story in her exquisite images.  On the open and matching dust jacket and book case, we first see, on the right (front), the dandelion gleefully happy at becoming a real lion.  To the left, on the back, the dandelion is in full bloom with a smaller bud extending from the left side.  This becomes the lion's tail.  Along the yellow spine are tiny dandelion seeds floating between the text.

The opening and closing endpapers are a bright yellow.  With a page turn the dark gray background is a canvas for the text of the verso and title pages and, on the right, the field of dandelions fades to the back with Dandelion about to bloom on the right.  This is the beginning of the story.

Using charcoal and coloring digitally Yoko Tanaka supplies readers with breathtaking scenes across double pages, a series of vertical panels spanning two pages, a group of square and rectangular images on a single page and full-page pictures.  Once two smaller visuals are placed over a larger picture.  These shifts in size contribute to the excellent pacing and foreshadowing.

When Yoko Tanaka wishes to express the utter bliss Dandelion is feeling, she brings us close to him but then she surprises us by giving us a panoramic view comparing his tiny size to the real world.  Every emotion experienced by Dandelion is shown on his face.  We feel a deep bond to this little flower turned king of beasts.  His openness to taking different pathways is invigorating and hopeful.

One of my many, many, favorite illustrations is a full-page picture.  It is a close-up view of the rigging on the sailing ship.  A portion of the mast and wrapped and stretched rope are shown.  On the mast sits Dandelion.  He is leaning back on his front paws.  His tail is up.  His face is upturned toward the sun.  Closed eyes and a smile on his face suggest contentment. In the background against a pale gray sky are two white birds.


Without the use of words, Yoko Tanaka in Dandelion's Dream, tells a tale readers will implore you to read to them repeatedly.  There will be moments eliciting sighs, gasps and grins.  And I expect there will be loud exclamations when the final illustration is revealed.  I can't imagine a personal or professional bookshelf without a copy of this book on it.

To learn more about Yoko Tanaka and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Yoko Tanaka has an account on Instagram. At the publisher's website you can view two stunning pages of artwork.  At Penguin Random House you can view the first five pages after the endpapers.  In 2015 Yoko Tanaka was the featured illustrator at Words & Pictures, the SCBWI British Isles Online Magazine.

Winging It

To leave that which provides comfort requires a certain kind of bravery and, sometimes, an unintended impetus.  An unplanned incident might place us in a position not of our choosing.  We are faced with choices for which we have no experience.  We are completely unprepared.  This is a frightening feeling.

To alleviate this fear, our first thought is to return to comfort as soon as possible.  In fly! (Beach Lane Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, September 17, 2019) conceived and illustrated by Mark Teague a fledgling is faced with an undesirable dilemma.  Its challenge appears insurmountable.

In this wordless tale a baby bird with a ceaseless need for worms finds itself in an unfortunate situation.  As the day begins, its parent serves up worm after worm.  Tiring of the child's demands the parent makes one of their own.  It wants the bird to come out of the nest, to the branch and be fed the next worm there.

In a fit of frustration and wanting only the next worm, the fledgling furiously leaps out of the nest and tumbles to the ground.  YIKES!  The parent flies down to asses any harm, and then tells the baby bird to fly back to the nest.

This is not at all what the child wants to do.  The baby bird suggests hopping on its parent's back for a ride back to the nest.  To the parent, this is ridiculous.  All kinds of birds fly.  The baby bird proposes a hot air balloon, a hand glider, itself as a superhero or an airplane pilot.  This infuriates the parent.

In an effort to reason with its baby, the parent mentions a journey to be taken toward a southern region in autumn.  The responses from the fledgling are numerous modes of transportation; none of which are flying with its wings.  The baby bird is now laughing uncontrollably.

As nightfall arrives, in a final tactic, the parent describes three more scenarios.  Then the parent does the unthinkable.  As you might expect, the baby bird acts accordingly.  The result is as surprising as it was in the morning.  Sweet dreams.


The baby bird balanced on the edge of the nest on the front of the matching dust jacket and book case has no intention of flying.  It's much too far from the nest to the ground for flying.  The only thing on its mind is worms.  To the left, on the back, on a canvas of white, the baby bird is explaining to its frustrated parent why flying is not an option. The text on the front is varnished.  The image on the back is varnished.

On a sky-blue background on the opening endpapers are five rows of nests.  The baby bird is in or on the nest in a variety of positions.  On the closing endpapers, a similar background is used.  The baby bird is blissfully happy in several different poses after resolving its problem.  On the title page the title is much larger than on the jacket and case.  Beneath it is Mark Teague's name above the nest.  In the nest, the egg has just opened.

Rendered in acrylics by Mark Teague, the illustrations in this title speak the proverbial thousand words every time.  To begin, two full-page pictures set the stage for the hunger of the baby bird and the constant presentation of a worm by the parent.  The first double-page picture introduces the use of speech bubbles, all pictorial.  These conversations begin the conflict between the parent and child and the ultimate quandary for the baby bird.

The use of single-page images, two-page visuals and two double-page vertical displays are brilliant in providing splendid pacing with every page turn.  Mark Teague also places a smaller image on a larger double-page picture.  Sometimes the borders of his pictorial speech bubbles go off a page.  The facial expression on the baby bird and parent elevate the hilarity to laugh-out-loud funny.  We are also privy to masterful use of perspective.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is a double-page picture.  On a crisp, white background a swirl of blue like a pathway begins in the upper, left-hand side and winds up and down to the upper, right hand side.  The baby bird is positioned on three points on this path.  In its pictorial balloons of speech, it is hurtling off a sky jump, flying like a super bird and piloting a single-seat airplane.  With each revelation it shouts and snickers harder.  In the lower, right-hand corner is the parent bird looking right at readers.  Its mouth is turned down.  Its wings are hugged to its sides.  Squiggles of steam rise from its head.  This contrast is the comedy.


Regardless of the number of times you read fly! written (conceived) and illustrated by Mark Teague, you'll find yourself laughing.  This book will appeal to readers of all ages because of the humor and how many can connect to the reality being depicted.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal bookshelves.

At the National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature there is an entry for Mark Teague.  This is a video from NCCIL 2016.




There is a Q & A with Mark Teague at Publishers Weekly by Sara Grochowski dated July 13, 2017.  At the publisher's website you can view multiple interior images.  They have a link to a three-page guide about sharing wordless picture books with young readers.  They also have a video with instructions in making Your Own Fly! Bird.

Following Toward Forever

Late Thursday night in the eastern daylight time zone and in the early hours of Friday morning, you could see a movement swell. It traveled across our planet from place to place as the day September 20, 2019 dawned.  This outpouring of support for the Global Climate Strike clearly demonstrates the power of a single soul to rally people around a worldwide crisis.

While the efforts of this sixteen-year-old Swedish girl, Greta Thunberg, have rightfully drawn international attention, there are other champions, single souls, who without any notice, change a life (or lives) for the better every day.  These unsung heroes walk among us, displaying compassion for those who do not have the ability to care for themselves.  They see what is needed and respond accordingly.  Stormy (Schwartz & Wade, September 17, 2019) conceived and illustrated by Guojing (The Only Child, Schwartz & Wade, December 15, 2015) is a striking depiction of kindness steadfastly delivered and eventually received.  It is about being lost and found.  It is about having a place to call home.

Without words this story begins and ends on the opening and closing endpapers.  On the first is a heap beneath a bench beneath a tree in a park.  Following this is a double-page picture for the title, verso and dedication pages, moving us closer to the bench.  A small curly-haired dog is sleeping in a ball shape for warmth.

 In a series of horizontal panels, a woman comes to the bench to read a newspaper.  The pup, afraid, runs away and watches her from a distance until she leaves.  As night falls, the homeless dog is again under the bench.  As the tale continues in a collection of horizontal panels, some nearly perfect squares, the woman returns the next day with a ball for the dog.  She carefully tries to get it to play.  The dog runs away.  The woman leaves but does not take the ball.

 On the third day a cautious game of throw and fetch takes place between the woman and the hesitant stray.  As the sun starts to set, there is still a distance between them.  The woman leaves to head back to her home in the city.  She does not know the dog, ball in its mouth, is following her at a safe space.

After the woman walks through her door, the dog sits outside, as if willing her to look out her window and discover it there.  It gets darker and darker and begins to rain.  The shower turns into a full-blown storm with flashes of lightning and thunder.  Drenched and shaking, the pup seeks shelter in a soggy cardboard box by the doorway, leaving the ball on the sidewalk.

Within the final seven page turns, readers will feel their hearts racing.  They will want to call out to the dog and the woman.  You can't help but sense the deep desperation filling both these beings.  You wonder and wish.  And then . . .


Without words we still comprehend everything through the striking visuals created by Guojing.  Each moment is portrayed exquisitely and explicitly to the point the words appear spontaneously in our minds and are engraved on our hearts.  This connection through art begins on the front of the dust jacket.  The pup's stance is assured but seeking.  The ball is a symbol of patience, kindness and acceptance.  The luminosity seen in the clouds is a technique used throughout the book to supply warmth or the hope of warmth.

To the left, on the back of the dust jacket it's night in the park.  The dog is sitting in front of the bench with the ball on the ground in front of it.  Fireflies sparkle among the grass as a few stars twinkle in the partly cloudy sky.  A crescent moon glows on the right.  The dust jacket is covered in a deep midnight blue.  The only element other than the author's name, the title and publisher's logo on the spine is a silver dog tag on the front.  It reads STORMY above an etched dog bone.

As stated earlier the opening endpapers start this story and the closing endpapers end the story at the same place with noticeable differences. 

The illustrations were rendered in pencil and watercolor and compiled digitally.

Each panel in a group of panels on a single page directs our attention to a specific moment.  The panel sizes vary to place emphasis on those moments.  Our eyes move from each one to the next, forming an emotional connection between us and the woman and the dog.  For dramatic effect Guojing has full-page and double-page pictures.  They wrap around us, making us a part of the narrative. 

Each of these panels are also a layer to the story.  We can perceive something growing.  The skies behind the woman,  the dog and each setting are also indicative of changes.  The use of light and shadow is masterful by Guojing.  As the rain begin in earnest a streetlight shines on the dog waiting outside the woman's home.  The only other light is from her window.  All other windows are dark.  As the storm intensifies the darkness with little light formulates one vivid scene after the other.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is a double-page picture.  The tree near the park bench extends up the left side with one branch moving along the top and across the gutter almost to the bench.  Two birds fly in a glowing sky.  Next to the tree the small dog sits with the ball between its paws.  Almost next to the bench the woman sits, knees drawn up and held by her arms.  The two watch each other carefully.  You know they both desire to be closer.  The one has survived by being cautious but needs love and the other has a great deal of love to give but doesn't want to frighten the other.  You have to remind yourself to breathe looking at this picture.


If reading the dedication

For my lost dog, Dou Dou.
I miss you. 

does not bring tears to your eyes, there will be other moments when you will burst into sobs.  But . . . in this book, Stormy conceived and illustrated by Guojing, despite every circumstance, we find ourselves believing in miracles.   We find our tears turning to joy and true contentment born of love.  I recommend this book with all the stars for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Guojing and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.  Guojing has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  Here is the publisher's website highlighting Stormy.  Enjoy the artwork here and on Guojing's Instagram account.  Author, reviewer and blogger, Julie Danielson, talks about this book on her site, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast and she also includes artwork.

A Fascinating Fellow To Follow . . . Again

There is a fine line in choosing to follow when curiosity beckons.  If we stay, we avoid possible pitfalls, but may miss out on a one-of-a-kind adventure.  If we go, we might be walking into a how-do-we-get-out-of-this disaster or we may experience complete joy.  There's really no predicting what will occur. 

If you happen to be a fearless feline like the one we met in Spot, the Cat (Little Simon, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, March 1, 2016) conceived and illustrated by Henry Cole, there is no weighing of possible outcomes.  You go with gusto.  This cat is back in a companion title, Spot & Dot (Little Simon, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, August 13, 2019).  It's an intricately designed wordless wonder introducing two new characters by Henry Cole.  It's a single story weaving through an entire city brimming with stories.

Spot, the cat, is stretching toward the open window from the back of his boy's chair.  He joins Spot at the window to watch a young girl, a new neighbor, post a lost pet sign.  The boy and girl don't know, but Spot has seen the runaway dog, Dot, and is in pursuit.

As the dog runs through the bustling Antique fair, Spot is not far behind.  When Dot hops on one of several city buses, the cat knows exactly which one to board.  The dog's nose knows a certain shop, Maxine's Bakery, is apt to have treats.  It's loads of fun to watch how people do or don't respond to the duo running through the bakery.

Meanwhile, back near Spot's and Dot's humans' homes, the boy and girl are working together, posting the lost dog flyers everywhere and asking people if they've seen her.  The boy has no idea Spot has vanished again.  At the dog park, Spot is closing the distance to Dot which is a miracle considering the chaos of dozens and dozens of dogs and their humans. They race from one venue to the next, one noisy and the other pleasantly quieter.

Discouraged the boy and his new friend climb the stairs to their respective homes.  Wait a minute! Two wayward pets complete their tour of the city and its multitude of occupants.  Two sets of new friends know home is the ultimate destination.


Eager readers know an escapade is in the offing as they watch Spot and Dot, strategically placed above their names in the title, race down the city street.  Each home in the row of houses, spread across the open and matching dust jacket and book case, offers additional tales of the residents, humans and animals.  Some notice the passing of Spot and Dot, wondering about their wandering.  Readers will enjoy running their hands over the dust jacket to feel the raised portions of the image and text.

On the opening and closing endpapers the purple color used for the street becomes a background.  Henry Cole begins this story without words on his title page with more of his highly intricate artwork.  Each fine line is carefully placed to portray a breathtaking whole.  Single page pictures from varying perspectives start the story building with a gentle tension, moving between the boy and girl and Spot chasing after Dot.  When the focus shifts to the dog and cat alone, readers find themselves dazzled by fabulous double-page illustrations. 

Each of these double-page visuals asks us to pause.  We peer in windows to see movers and painters working inside the neighbor's house, fish swim in two different bowls above the fish market and a dog wishing for the same freedom as he watches Spot race past his door.  In the Antique fair there are thousands of objects displayed by vendors.  The Hot Dog food truck seems to be where Dot is headed, but she's got more important things on her mind.

Readers will be fascinated by the banners hanging on the city buses advertising canine treats and treatments for fleas.  I can almost hear readers gasping when Dot enters the bakery.  You'll can almost smell the wondrous odors of pastries and fresh hot drinks in the air, but then you'll notice a cat running along the counter and a dog running behind the counter.  The expressions and body postures of every living thing, throughout the title, are completely captivating and convey the vibrant life through which this dog and cat are exploring.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations spans two pages.  Dot and Spot are scampering through the public library.  We see Spot entering on the left as Dog runs nearly off the page on the right.  The READ posters on the circulation desk feature dogs.  Many of the patrons are reading dog books.  One of the librarians is reading a dog book aloud for storytelling.  Some of the people don't even realize a cat and dog are present.  The facial features on others range from inquisitiveness to I can't believe what I am seeing.  The upholstery on the comfy chairs is spotted/dotted as is the fabric on a woman's skirt.


With the final three full-page pictures, readers will feel the same contentment seen on the faces of one cat and one dog and two humans in Spot & Dot by Henry Cole.  Stress which delicately built as the animal twosome moved through the city evaporates, but memories of their experiences linger.  This book stands alone wonderfully but pairing it with the first title is a perfect match.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Henry Cole and his other work, please visit his website by following the link attached to his name.  Henry Cole invites you to follow him on his Facebook account.  At the publisher's website you can view interior images from the beginning of the book.  They have also supplied three activity sheets.

Looking But Not Seeing

More times than not when taking my canine companion outside for the last time late at night, she'll stop and stare off into the darkness several times.  What she hears or smells or even sees is beyond my human sensory comprehension.  It does cause me to hesitate.  The actual circumstances in those moments and those imagined are probably two entirely different things.  Under a darkened sky with only the light of stars and a moon in varying phases, a different world awakens.

It is in this realm, ripe with possibilities, a creator's gifts will thrive.  Sign Off (Beach Lane Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, May 7, 2019) conceived and illustrated by Stephen Savage draws our attention to those objects we look at every day.  He asks us to see opportunities.  In this wordless book he takes us into the night on a journey guaranteed to stay in our collective memories.

Prior to the image we see on the front of the cover, along a roadway bordered by a white fence, the watch-out-for-deer sign is posted under a tree.  With a page turn the deer is standing on its back legs and eating the overhead leaves of the tree.  What would happen if a vehicle came down the road?  Would it need to be totally deserted on this road for the deer to change position and consume the leaves?  These are the sort of questions you will continually be thinking throughout the book.

Near a working farm, the sign showing a rider on a tractor is posted. The deed of the driver is unexpected.  A vehicle is parked in a handicapped spot as evidenced by the sign.  You won't believe what happens next.

As each familiar sign first appears and is followed by the action taken by the sign's occupant, we are repeatedly surprised by the extent of their accomplishment and ingenuity.  There is an architectural wonder and a proclamation of affection.  It's like a gathering of short, short stories.  Then the silent narrative shifts; a rhythm is replaced.

We start to follow the movements of one particular person from page to page.  Others follow.  They are joined by more.  Where are all these individuals going?  It's at the final sign readers will be initially puzzled.  (There is a clue quietly being given.)  A group effort sheds light.


Each time you read this book, in addition to the questions it creates about the narrative, you wonder how author/illustrator Stephen Savage thought of having the images on signs come to life.  The brilliance in this story is that not only do they leave their signs, but a much larger tale is in the making.  It's absolutely unexpected which will leave readers smiling in astonishment.


The limited color palette shown on the front of the book case continues throughout the book.  It's nighttime so shades of blue, purple, green, gray and yellow, black and white along with spots of orange, brown, red and pink are used.  For pure dramatic effect the little bits of color become larger, calling our attention to big changes in the pacing and the narrative.

To the left of the opened book case, on the back, is an interior scene from the story.  It is joined by several questions which request readers to speculate about a larger perspective this narrative takes.  On the opening endpapers we are greeted with the verso and title pages.  On the closing endpapers everything appears normal, but now we are privy to the "real" story of signs at night.

Each image spans two pages.  Point of view alters to generate pacing and build anticipation.  The layout and design are a connected series of contrasts and marvelous revelations.  It is in this simplicity in each scene, the few elements, a larger magic is supplied.

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is when the sign for the worker shoveling next to a pile of dirt becomes animated on the next page.  The pile of dirt is on the other side of the road opposite a home.  The orange sign is now empty of the worker.  He is standing next to the pile of dirt.  He is holding the shovel, point down to the ground with one leg crossed behind the other in a position of rest.  Out of the pile of dirt a castle has been fashioned.


As Sign Off conceived and illustrated by Stephen Savage is read it's hard not to inwardly or outwardly utter an exclamation of amazement.  We are captivated by the exploits of the signs' occupants but when they begin to gather together, it will be several pages before we start to understand.  This conclusion has a definite "wow" factor.  There are numerous opportunities for reader interaction.  What will the sign's occupant(s) do when the page is turned?  What other signs could be used?  What other things might signs' inhabitants do together?  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Stephen Savage and his other work, please follow the link attached to his name to access his website.  Stephen Savage has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  At the publisher's website you can view interior illustrations.  Stephen is interviewed at Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb.