Vanished Visuals

It would be hard to guesstimate the number of books without images lining bookshelves in homes, shops and libraries or stuffed into the memory of devices.  The word gazillion comes to mind.  What might make that amount easier to calculate is to narrow the field.  If we were to ask how many books for younger children have no illustrations, the sum might be simpler to reach.

A book with no pictures for kids doesn't even make sense.  During a read aloud, the first thing they want to see are the pictures.  In fact as a story is read, the listeners get closer and closer to you so they don't miss a single item in the visuals.

Nevertheless author B. J. Novak has written a book for children and their readers relying on the power of the spoken word.  The Book With No Pictures (Dial Books For Young Readers) is exactly as the title suggests.  There is not one single picture anywhere except for the tiny Penguin logo on the spine and next to the ISBN.

This is a book with no pictures.

In a completely conversational tone the narrator goes on to point out the obvious facts; reading a book with no pictures will be sadly lacking in fun bordering on boring and drop dead serious.  But with a page turn, the tables are turned when another key point is made.  Whatever the written words say, the reader has to say.

There is no way around this possible dilemma.   It is the unwritten rule of reading aloud.  No matter if the words are as wacky as can be, they must be spoken.

Immediately two words, which could only come from some remote alien planet, appear on the page.  Now the voice of the person reading aloud, the response to this exercise in hilarity, starts to appear on the pages.  Incredulity is predominant.

The reader is forced to declare identities and physical traits, not once, not twice but three times, which are absolutely not true.  Then along comes a nonsensical song, a pledge of friendship to a rather large creature with an alliterative name, and truly eye-rolling declarations about a certain child.  The finishing touch comes bursting off the page in a bonanza of goofy words to be read aloud loudly.  A plea ensues with the original narrator having the last word...well almost.

B. J. Novak's gift is in knowing exactly what form humor should take in order to entertain his audience.  The amount of text, the words used, and the font style, size and color on each page is done with distinct skill.  Wit wins with the interplay of the narrator's voice, what the reader has to read and the reader's responses.


If you have ever had any doubts about the power of pure storytelling, a connection between the teller and the audience, The Book With No Pictures written by B. J. Novak sets those to rest.  What I see happening with a reading of this book is the reader's intonation and facial expressions become the visual portion of the book.  If this is read silently, each reader will create their own mental pictures of the interactions taking place based upon their personal experiences.  This is exceedingly clever, loaded with comedy and a surefire hit with the intended audience and... others of almost any age too.

For all kinds of information about this book, please visit a special specific website by following the link embedded in the title.  There is a section for grownups, kids, teachers and celebrity enthusiasts.  Follow teacher librarian and blogger at Reederama, Jennifer Reed, was fortunate to have B. J. Novak visit her school this past week.  Please read her blog post about this fun-tastic experience.  Here's an interesting piece, B. J. Novak is not a celebrity author. (Oh, really?): An interview, in The Horn Book Magazine.

Memorable Mail

The tactile experience of reading a paper book can't be denied; holding the entire volume in your hands while turning the pages plus there's the smell when those very pages are fanned or when the book is first opened.  To read a paper book you need to visit a library or a book shop.  Even if you place an order online, there is an element of waiting, a sense of anticipation.  Reading a paper book is not a click away like reading on a device.  It requires a little bit more.  An article posted April 11, 2013 in Scientific American, The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: The Science of Paper versus Screens, explores issues which will continue to be debated for many years to come.

Similarly communication can be quickly achieved via email, text messages, direct messages on Twitter, messaging on Facebook, pictures on Instagram or through a host of other social networking services.  Correspondence with these, while usually instant, does not have the same feeling of expectancy.  There is no waiting for the postman, checking your mailbox or postal box, or wondering when opening an envelope.  There is still nothing like the joy of discovering an unexpected letter or package.  In a title to be released on November 4, 2014, A Letter For Leo (Clarion Books), author illustrator Sergio Ruzzier gives readers a peek at the life of an amiable, hopeful postman.

Leo is the mailman of a little old town.

No matter what is delivered or to whom, Leo is a welcome visitor each day.  If he sees friends engaged in a friendly game he may pause to play.  He thinks nothing of stopping to chat with neighbors.  Leo has a good life.

There is one thing he wishes he could change.  Leo has never gotten a letter.  Each evening he thinks maybe, just maybe, a letter will come for him tomorrow.

Bright and early one day as he is taking mail from the large postal box, he gets a surprise.  It's not a letter for him but a little bird is trapped inside.  For every question Leo asks, he receives Cheep as a reply.  Not quite sure what to do with this new acquaintance, he decides to take him home.

Leo and Cheep are constant companions, sharing the mail route, meals, getting tucked in at night and the snowy winter.  With spring's appearance sadness settles over Leo.  He knows Cheep is bigger and better able to find his flock.  Good-byes are exchanged.  Leo's good life continues but...Cheep?


Sweet sincerity is found in each simple sentence Sergio Ruzzier has penned for this story.  We have an unseen narrator, Leo's voiced comments and thoughts plus the charming single word of Cheep.  Ruzzier has a way with words making them welcome and warm.

The truly unique style and color palette of Sergio Ruzzier is revealed on the single illustration spanning the front and back of the matching dust jacket and book case.  His blend of muted yellow, purple, and green rolling hills with a turquoise and red hill in the distance provide the perfect backdrop for his whimsical, endearing characters and unusual flora.  We aren't quite sure about the storyline yet but the gentle smiles on Leo and Cheep promise good things.

Ruzzier alternates between double-page and single page, edge to edge, illustrations and numerous loosely-shaped circles and ovals to enhance the impeccable pacing and emotion in this tale.  His lines, using pen and ink, are delicate but deliberate.  The combination of all his talents results in several pictures conveying much to the reader without the use of text.

One of my favorite illustrations of many is when Leo decides to take Cheep home with him.  It's a small circular picture focusing on Leo's upper body with softer shades of the landscape behind him.  Cheep is perched, sitting, on his hat.  Kindness, trust and the happiness of both characters is highly visible.


One of the things about books written and illustrated by Sergio Ruzzier is they find a way to fill up your heart.  A Letter For Leo reminds us to keep hoping.  Wishes do come true and a longed-for letter will show up when we need it the most.  Ultimately uplifting, this book would be a wonderful opening to a discussion about the value of correspondence and friendships formed from true acts of good will.

To learn more about Sergio Ruzzier please follow the link, taking you to his website, embedded in his name.  More links can be found at a previous review here.  Follow this link to a wonderful interview at Miss Marple's Musings.  Sergio Ruzzier has an article, For the Fear of Failure, in the March/April 2014 The Horn Book Magazine dedicated to illustration.  Below is video filmed for the site Wild Things!: Acts Of Mischief In Children's Literature.  The website corresponds to a book of the same name written by Julie Danielson, Elizabeth Bird and Peter D. Sieruta. And yes, Sergio, I did find the tribute illustrative detail you have hidden in A Letter For Leo.
Updated January 1, 2015: Sergio has created a board on Pinterest for this title. 



Update:  Sergio Ruzzier appeared at Julie Danielson's blog, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast on November 5, 2014.

Update:  Sergio Ruzzier was interviewed on KidLit TV.

It All Started With...

There is no need to say it aloud.  You can begin with a whisper.  It's like an "on" switch for laughter with kids.  You know the word I mean.  Underwear.

If that word appears in a book title, it's like a homing device, a true attention getter.  Without a doubt One Big Pair Of Underwear (Beach Lane Books, September 9, 2014), words written by Laura Gehl, pictures made by Tom Lichtenheld, will attract guys and gals like honey does bees.  Once they start reading it, they are in for an even bigger treat.

ONE big pair of underwear.
TWO brown bears who hate to share.
ONE bear wears the underwear.

Already something is not quite right.  Someone has one, the other has none.  With a page turn and a glance to the right, two sacks of salty snacks get noticed by three young yaks who are wearing black backpacks.

Guess what?  We now have one very unhappy snackless yak.  The pattern continues with stealing seals, greedy goats, and napping cats.  Each time one member of the group, whose numbers continue to grow by one, is left wanting what they others have.

There aren't enough cookbooks, jet skis, sticks or trombones.  A hippo is harrumphing, a cow is crying, a duck is downcast and a baboon is baffled.  Clearly these critters are missing a key component, a valuable life lesson.

As if it isn't bad enough already,

TEN tall, twisty playground slides

come into view.  Twenty, not ten, pigs want to glide down those slides.  I don't think this is going to end well because pigs are...well...pigs.

Readers are in for a jolly jolt as those pigs show how dividing is done.  Two bears, one wearing underwear, take note.  Strike up the band!  It's a parade of possibilities.


Laura Gehl's love of words is evident in her debut picture book.  Alliteration and rhyme mix and match on each and every page.  Adjective descriptors introduce things, animals and actions as the final word in each phrase creates a rhythm within the foursome.  Here is a complete group.

THREE fast scooters, painted teal.
FOUR ball-bouncing silver seals.
THREE seals steal a set of wheels.
ONE seal gets a real bad deal.  


Look at those wide-eyed bears with mischievous looks on their faces as they stand in a giant pair of briefs, one body protruding through each leg hole.  How can you not laugh?  On the back of this matching dust jacket and book case, the duo stands looking off to the left.  The one without any underwear holds a spyglass.  The text sums up this book nicely.

Hey, look! Here's a counting book that everyone can share!

The underwear hilarity continues on the opening and closing endpapers.  Shades of blue and silhouettes of the twosome show them first, boating over the waves in the daylight with the underwear billowing sideways as a sail and then, second, beneath a starry sky toasting marshmallows over an open fire.  Their tent...the underwear upside down.

Rendered in pencil, with digital color and assistance from Kristen Cella, Tom Lichtenheld begins the interior with a double-page spread of the huge underwear stretched across the gutter hanging from a clothesline, each of the bears peeking from behind a single tree.  The title spans nearly edge to edge above the line.  This, like all the subsequent illustrations, is lively and in full color.

For most of the book, Lichtenheld relies on a pristine white background to accentuate his detailed picture portrayals.  Three smaller visuals will be on one page with a single illustration following, showing a disappointed creature.  When everyone finally begins to see the benefit of sharing, the blue sky from the title page gradually fills in the white.

Lichtenheld's sense of humor and gift for capturing emotion are most noticeable on the single pages.  His picture of the seal on a tricycle while the others blast away on scooters or the baboon holding a triangle as the others toot on their trombones is hilarious.  He certainly knows how to please his audience.


One Big Pair Of Underwear words by Laura Gehl and pictures made by Tom Lichtenheld is a rollicking romp in rhyme.  Readers will count their way to a lighthearted lesson in sharing.  I think there is sure to be some clapping and toe-tapping along with a request to read it again.  You might want to have one big pair of underwear handy to heighten the fun.

If you wish to learn more about Laura Gehl or Tom Lichtenheld please follow the links embedded in their names to take you to their websites.  Each has extras you will want to use with your students or children.  This link to the publisher's website shows even more pages from the book.

S'more bears. The back endpapers from #OneBigPairOfUnderwear from @SimonKIDS (guess what constellation is overhead) pic.twitter.com/WIILY0zGY3
— Tom Lichtenheld (@tlichtenheld) September 11, 2014

The Gift Of One Small Thing

It's accepted that technology has given us the means to bridge many gaps in our understanding of other people's day to day experiences, where they live and work, and the customs and cultures which define them.  Even more valuable is face to face conversations with those individuals.  In 1995 a group, LATTICE (Linking All Types Of Teachers To International Cross-Cultural Education), was founded by esteemed educator Sally McClintock.  Membership was/is comprised of school districts in mid-Michigan, Michigan State University, international graduate school students/scholars at Michigan State University, and community members.

At its inception there were only two school districts participating.  My district was one of them. Being invited to join others in this program was an honor and an invaluable experience.  I will never forget it.  Among the most vivid recollections is sitting and listening to people talk about the Rwandan genocide.

Likewise if a book is written and illustrated based upon abundant research and personal interviews, readers can begin to grasp the staggering impact of events on the lives of those persons involved.  The Red Pencil (Little, Brown and Company, September 16, 2014) written by Andrea Davis Pinkney with illustrations by Shane W. Evans, a novel in verse, focuses on the experiences of a twelve year old girl caught in the conflict in Darfur, Sudan, Africa.  This region remains in a state of humanitarian crisis.




PART 1
OUR FARM
South Darfur, Africa
September 2003-March 2004
WHEAT
Finally, I am twelve.
Old enough to wear a toob.

As soon as I wake,
Muma whispers a birthday wish,

"Blessings for all the years to come, Amira."

My mother has been awake for hours,
starting early with farm chores.

On this birthday morning
bright
as the sun's first yawn,
ripened wheat
sways.

Its golden braids 
are woven with the promise
of a hearty harvest.

Ya, wheat! ...

Amira, her younger sister Leila, Dando, her father, and Muma, her mother, are one family of many in a village of farmers.  Leila, though physically handicapped, is gifted at making up songs and determined to be no different than any other little girl particularly when it comes to activities with other children, especially Gamal.  Dando, grower of extraordinary tomatoes, is a shining light in Amira's life as she is in his.  He and she play a game,

What Else Is Possible?

seeking to find the brightness in all things.  Muma sees only tradition; one path to follow for girls, work, marriage and children.  Another important member of their extended family is Dando's longtime friend, Old Anwar, a chief competitor in the campaign for growing the finest tomatoes.

Now picture if you can days filled with chores like raking cow plop, chopping vegetables for a one pot meal, walking miles for water and tending sheep. Interspersed among these weekly routines is the joy of a newly sharped twig from Dando to use in making her sand pictures, the noise of waking the moon, the fear of possible attack by Janjaweed, the government military, the sadness of her friend's family leaving and the thrill of a new lamb's birth.  There is also hope from an overheard conversation; Dando and Old Anwar know Amira is destined for a different life than tradition demands.

Realized terror sends a new family unit, Amira, Leila, Muma, Old Anwar and Gamal moving away from the only home she has ever known to somewhere she has never been.  Traveling by night for safety and despite gnawing hunger, lips and throats parched by thirst, feet raw from walking and aching limbs, they succeed in finding safety after days and days and days, so many Amira loses track.  But this place, this place of houses with no walls other than pieces of rice bags and root roofs, this place a sanctuary for thousands, is a hollow shell of existence.  Sadness has replaced air filling everyone's lungs as they breathe in and out.  This is Kalma.

In response to what she has seen and endured Amira stops speaking; her voice hidden deep inside.  A new normal replaces the old; oil covering skin to protect from the mosquitoes, hedgehog observations, lines for water rationing, tin-can soccer, released grief and desperation.  Coming to the camp a woman looks into Amira's eyes and sees, a gift of a red pencil and yellow tablet with blue lines begins the healing for this twelve-year-old girl.  She and Old Anwar share secrets; an old hope growing again, like the extraordinary tomatoes of her father, Dando.


Poem by poem the words of Andrea Davis Pinkney bind us closer and closer to Amira and the other characters in this work.  By describing cherished ordinary incidents, little glimpses into their relationships, we come to understand them as completely human.  We feel deeply moved to be a part of their simple lives.  Throughout Pinkney's pacing is like a heartbeat, reflecting the emotions of a moment.

Details, lyrically portrayed, of places draw us into the story, into the landscape of the Sudan.  It's easy to feel as though we have been transported back in time; to become a member of Amira's family.  Our senses are one with hers.  Here are a few sample phrases and a single poem.


Little Leila fought her way into this world.
She was born on a night
when the moon had tucked itself
into the sky's deepest pockets. ...


... We snake,
single file, 
like stitches along the desert's hem. ...

FOOTPRINTS
I pretend
     Dando is walking alongside me,
     holding my hand,
     helping me through this.

I pretend
     to see his footprints,
     long,
     shaped like flattened leaves,
     marking the sand,
     setting down a path
     for my own small
     feet
     to follow.

I pretend
     Dando is here,
     stepping heavily,
     heel-toe,
     heel-toe,
     leading me,
     lovingly.

I pretend
     so, so hard,
     with my whole
     heart.

But it's fruitless.

This so-hard pretending
doesn't work.

My father's footprints,
nowhere.


The artwork of Shane W. Evans pairs exquisitely with the text of Pinkney, a visual extension.  Light, fine lines with soft shading mirror the place in which the story is set.  The illustrations are never an intrusion but a compliment varying in size and placement like sketches in a journal.   It's not as if he drew the pictures but Amira was the artist.  Evans knows her soul.

One of my favorite visuals takes up the lower two-thirds of a page.  Their beloved sheep Nali is pregnant.  Amira and her mother are reaching from behind her, standing next to one another, to feel the movement of the lamb in her belly.  It's magical.


I came to the reading of this book with no expectations other than a faint buzzing on social media. But because The Red Pencil by Andrea Davis Pinkney with illustrations by Shane W. Evans, though fictional, is vested in truth, I was genuinely touched over and over.  I could not put it down once I started; needing to know the fate of Amira and her family.  This is a very important book.  Make sure it is in every collection.

A complete author's note, four pages, offers explanations as to the situation in the Darfur conflict and Andrea Davis Pinkney's hope for the writing of this book.  A glossary/pronunciation guide, a character/location pronunciations page and important terms that appear in this book page can be found at the end.  Please follow the links embedded in Andrea Davis Pinkney's and Shane W. Evans' names to view their websites.  At the publisher's website a beginning portion of the book is available for you to read. Although this post in The Horn Book is in reference to another title, it gives insight into the writing process of Andrea Davis Pinkney, A Profile of Andrea Davis Pinkney by Brian Pinkney, Phil Davis, Jr., and Dobbin Pinkney.  BEA 2014: Andrea Davis Pinkney: Shading Light on a Dark Subject, an article in Publishers Weekly, gives more information about The Red Pencil.

Enjoy the video below:  2014 Arbuthnot Lecture featuring Andrea Davis Pinkney



Update:  Andrea Davis Pinkney is the guest blogger at Nerdy Book Club on October 21, 2014.  The post is titled Finding The Red Pencil.

Update:  Enjoy this podcast Little Brown School & Library.

Update:  Andrea Davis Pinkney has an educator's guide for her book now.

Tunes And Transformation

Still like that old time rock 'n' roll

That kind of music just soothes the soul

I reminisce about the days of old

With that old time rock 'n' roll

Bob Seeger

With strong roots in older styles such as blues, gospel, county and rhythm and blues, rock and roll music took the world by storm in the 1950s.  If you think the appeal of the beat found in these songs has lessened over the years, start playing a selection for a group of children.  Within moments first one, then another will start to move.  Before long all the guys and gals will be dancing to their hearts' content, loving every single minute of it.

A title slated to be released on October 21, 2014 proudly presents the lifetime achievements of one of music realm's greatest musicians.  Rock & Roll Highway: The Robbie Robertson Story (Christy Ottaviano Books, Henry Holt and Company) written by Sebastian Robertson with illustrations by Adam Gustavson chronicles this man's road to renown.  His focus never faltering this man is still living his dream.

The Last Waltz
On Thanksgiving night in 1976 the crowd cheered wildly, stomping their feet, demanding the return of their favorite band.  Having just completed a five-hour set of songs, The Band, came out for one more. "You're still there?" Robbie spoke into the microphone, exciting the fans further. ...

From this opening page the clock is turned back to 1945.  As early as two, Robbie was listening to popular tunes of the day coming forth from the family radio.  Frequent trips to the Six Nations Indian Reservation, where his mother had been raised, instilled a love of storytelling in his soul.  Gatherings of relatives, many bringing instruments, increased his desire to make and write music.  He lived and breathed it playing his guitar for hours.

How many kids at the age of thirteen have their own band which later becomes the opening act for a popular group?  Robbie and his buddies did.  He went on to write two songs for Ronnie Hawkins and The Hawks, this same band, which appeared on their next album.  Robbie was on his way to the big time; New York City to learn with some great musicians and later a chance to play with The Hawks.

Beginning as the bassist, then as guitarist, Robbie practiced non-stop. How many people sleep with their guitar?  Robbie did.  He was further inspired by seeing and being with musicians such as Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly.  Then came a phone call bringing about more transitions.

It was Bob Dylan.  The year was 1965.  They toured with Dylan, lived at his home in Woodstock, New York and recorded more music with him.  They became simply The Band, but the music they were developing was anything but simple.  Their sound, a blend of many, contributed to what is known today as Americana Music.

By 1970 Robbie and The Band commanded a huge presence in their field.  How many North American bands make the cover of Time?  They did.  And they did it first.


Author Sebastian Robertson is the son of musician Robbie Robertson, bringing a deeply personal perspective to the writing.  He divides the narrative into sections; each one emphasizing a significant event.  These are noted with headings such as:

Sleeping, 1945
We Are the People of the Longhouse or
Endless Highway---"Hey, Robbie? Ready to Take a Shot?"

This close relationship with the biographee, who is still living, gives the readers a more intimate look with the inclusion of numerous anecdotes. The writing style is informal but informative.


 Opening the dust jacket the illustration on the front shows a younger Robbie seated with his guitar on the back of the Cadillac driven by The Hawks from gig to gig.  It is set in a more rural scene depicting their cross county travels in the American South and all across Canada.  A beautiful full page portrait of a thoughtful, experienced Robertson covers the back.

Each time I read a book illustrated by Adam Gustavson his realistic paintings in oil seem ready to come to life. His illustrations heighten the narrative.  The layout, design and size of his visuals are dictated by his interpretation of the text.  Some pictures have borders; others flow from edge to edge and still more are smaller insets, elements stressing a portion of the storyline.  He uses light masterfully.

One of my favorite illustrations is of a younger Robbie lying in bed.  Resting against the side, near his head, is pictured the top portion of his guitar.  Above his head on the shelf is a transistor radio playing softly.  He is deep in thought, intent on the music.  Light, shadows and the color palette convey a sense of tranquility.


The best thing about nonfiction picture books is each reader brings to the book a certain amount of knowledge.  Sometimes you think you have an understanding of the topic but after reading a particular title, all you can think is "Wow, I never knew that before reading this?"  In reading Rock & Roll: The Robbie Robertson Story by Sebastian Robertson with illustrations by Adam Gustavson my knowledge of this particular musician grew by leaps and bounds.  For younger readers it will certainly serve as an inspiration.  A thorough annotated timeline with photographs is found at the back.  Sebastian Robertson also includes a two page question and answer with his dad.

For more information about the work of Adam Gustavson please follow the link embedded in his name.  To discover more about rock and roll follow the first link in this post to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame website.  This link will take you to the publisher's website.  They include eight interior illustrations from this title.

This review/recommendation was written based upon an Advance Reader's Edition I received from my favorite independent bookstore, McLean & Eakin Booksellers located in Petoskey, Michigan.

Every single week I am thankful to be participating in the 2014 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge at Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by Alyson Beecher.  Be sure to check out the other recommendations listed there.

UPDATE:  Sebastian Robertson is interviewed at Cynsations a blog hosted by author Cynthia Leitich Smith on February 15, 2017

To My Blog Followers

This is just a short post to let you know that circumstances beyond my control have prohibited me from posting in a timely manner these past few weeks, especially the past several days.  I hope to be back on track next week.  Thank you for your anticipated patience and your support of my blog.
Best to you all.

Toying With The Truth

About ten years ago I got a real solid lesson in things are not always what they appear to be.  I had been working in my gardens in front and was moving to one side of the house.  As I looked in the grass, I saw a large stick about three feet in length. I remember thinking, "How did that get there?" When I got closer I yelped; it was the biggest garter snake I had ever seen.  I'm not sure, of the two of us, who was more frightened.

One of the cutest father and son teams of 2013 first introduced to readers in The Bear's Song, have returned in a companion title, The Bear's Sea Escape (Chronicle Books).  Author illustrator Benjamin Chaud has the two still searching; first for one thing, then for each other.  It's an adventure worth following, every page of the way.

High atop the opera house with snowflakes falling fast, Papa Bear and his cub snuffle their snouts up through the snow. "We can't stay here!" Papa Bear grumbles.  "This is no place for a nice long nap."

Swiftly moving over city rooftops the duo discover a way inside what they believe to be the ultimate hibernation home, a boutique for teddy bears located in a large, multi-floored shopping center.  A youthful shopper notices Little Bear believing him to be the best toy bear in the world.  Before the two dozing bears are aware the cub is being whisked away as an additional member on a family vacation.

Shocked to realize Little Bear is no longer sleeping next to him, Papa Bears gives chase.  On a scooter through city streets, hanging on to the caboose of a train and grasping a box being loaded on board a cruise ship, a father follows his son.  It is no easy task to locate the wee one on this immense vessel.  Where oh where is Little Bear?

Papa Bear looks for his cub under the sea making multiple inquiries of the local inhabitants.  No Little Bear.  Papa Bear looks for his cub among all the bodies swimming in the surf and lounging on the beach.  No Little Bear.  Paper Bear looks for his cub among the jungle vegetation keeping to the winding path.  No Little Bear.

Cavorting to a conga masked merrymakers snag Papa Bear, luring him into their line.  Suddenly over the happy hullabaloo, a sound is heard.  This boisterous blast is known to only two.  Sweet dreams on a balmy beach are in the offing.


Using words which replicate the rhythm of an action-packed treasure (Little Bear) hunting trek, Benjamin Chaud takes his readers on this jolly jaunt.  We weave through a people-packed street, train station, boat, beach and jungle resort not to mention taking a dive in the underwater world.  Every two, three or four sentence group links us to the next with a pleasurable pause.  Here is a single sample.

Perhaps Little Bear went for a swim?  Papa Bear dives into the sea to explore for himself.
"Have you seen my Little Bear?" he asks a puzzled puffer fish.  The reef is brimming with bubbles and barnacles, scales and seaweed, but there is no sign of fluffy brown fur for as far as the eye can see!

Benjamin Chaud prefaces his story with a matching dust jacket and book case using a vibrant color palette in shades of deep blue-green, red, gold and black.  On the front we are treated to an image similar to one of the interior illustrations.  On the back, to our left, he extends and closes the story with a small oval picture of Papa Bear, pink flowered lei around his neck and a blossom on his head, sleeping beneath a palm tree.  Baby Bear wearing his party costume, holding a ukulele, is resting peacefully on his big belly.  The identical gold and cream opening and closing endpapers in a scroll pattern supply the background for a tiny blue hummingbird.

Turning a page we see Papa Bear and Little Bear popping up out of the snow beneath the title.  All of the twelve double-page visuals are loaded with numerous exquisite details; a mix of realism and myth and a blend of urban with the wild.  You can spy a fox running through the city, penguins frolicking on board the cruise ship, a mermaid swimming by a submarine and yes...a yeti and a dodo bird on the beach.  You can literally spend hours looking at each illustration; first to locate Papa Bear and Little Bear and second to find all the other goodies tucked into each one.  As in the first title Chaud's playful pictures are full of fun.

I think my favorite illustration is the cross-section of the ship.  You get a real feel for Chaud's ability to include other tiny tales within his overall narrative.  Each room or section contains small individual parts of the larger whole.  I can't help grinning at the stubborn horse in one room or the penguins "chatting" in the hallway as one of their other friends takes a dip in the ship's pool with the human swimmers.


I have always been a firm believer in the saying "a book is a present you can open again and again" but The Bear's Sea Escape written and illustrated by Benjamin Chaud features new stories every time you look at one of the illustrations.  I sure hope more escapades highlighting these two characters are in the works.  If excellence is in the details, this title is a blue ribbon winner.

I sincerely enjoyed reading this post, Benjamin Chaud: You Know Him. You Just Don't Know You Know Him, by New York Public Library's Youth Materials Collection Specialist and blogger at A Fuse #8 Production, Elizabeth Bird.  The book trailer below is in French but gives you a great peek at the book.