One Little Bag: an amazing journey by Henry Cole. unpgd. Scholastic Press/ Scholastic Inc., April 7, 2020. 9781338359978. (Review of finished copy courtesy of publisher, ALAMW.)
Let me tell you right off the bat that I adore this book! One, it's wordless. Two, the illustrations evoke such a sense of aching nostalgia. Three, while there's the nostalgia, the story is so, so timely. Four, it's Henry freaking Cole for crying out loud! I am such a fan.
Recently someone posted a query somewhere of examples where a story starts before the title page. I didn't pay that much attention because nothing sprang immediately to mind. Knock, knock on the computer screen. This one!
One Little Bag starts on the end-pages with a pen and ink drawing of serene woods. There are four turkey vultures ambling through the forest with one lone tree colored light brown. The page-turn reveals that this tree has been harvested and has been loaded with others onto the bed of a truck, which is headed to the paper mill. Spot art on the following page shows the process of these logs being ground up and processed, page-turn, into paper, which, page turn is eventually turned into Hart-felt paper bags. There is one final double-page spread that shows a grocery store featuring a man and his young son checking out their groceries while others wait with full carts and a delivery man is carting in a supply of the Hart-felt paper bags.
The title page shows the man walking while the young boy bikes. The paper bag sits in his bike basket. In it is a flashlight. (Remember this for a later spread.) That bag gets reused the following day as a lunch bag. Dad is making lunch. A heart has been added to it. It is the first day of school. Spot art on the following page shows the boy eating alone but gradually joined by other children. Oh my heart!
The paper bag comes in handy in a number of different ways over the following spreads. Then suddenly, the boy is grown. A series of spot art ingeniously depicts this transition. And he's off to college with his guitar and his bag and his dad bidding him good-bye. He meets a like-minded musician and love blossoms. And that rumpled, crumpled paper bag is there through all of it.
Okay, I won't go through every spread. You get the idea. This is a book to be savored. To be reread multiple times. To be shared widely. Each time I reread this gem, I find a new detail that I missed earlier. Seriously, these spreads invite pausing and poring. Don't rush.
So if the story of unconditional love didn't grab you, surely the idea of the paper bag as touchstone will. If that doesn't, then check out Coles' author note and dedication. He spoke about the impact that the first Earth Day had on him. Teachers looking for a fresh angle on conservation can add this to the rotation.
One Little Bag is a keeper. It is a first purchase for every school and public library. It's a gift book. Do yourself a favor and share it with a young person ASAP.
The Little Red Cat Who Ran Away and Learned His Alphabet the Hard Way by Patrick McDonnell. unpgd. Little Brown Books for Young Readers/ Little, Brown and Company, September, 2017. 9780316502467. (Review of purchased finished copy)
I try to keep up. I really do. I get four review journals. I try to read most of the reviews. But I don't always get through them in a timely fashion so I rely on other online sources to keep me up-to-date. I have a lot of author "friends" on Facebook and have learned of new titles that way. I have a couple hundred blogs in an RSS feed and learn about books that way as well. Thankfully, that's how I found out about this wordless gem of an alphabet book.
Wordless alphabet book? Why yes! Who'd have thunk? Don't skip the initial pages folks. While the end-pages are decorated with letters of the alphabet, there is a page with a bit of spot art before the title page. The story really starts there and continues on the Title page. The little red cat in question has awakened and spied an open door. It isn't long before it runs into an alligator! Next up comes a bear, then a chicken. All three are chasing the little red cat until they all stop dead upon encountering a dragon! This causes a rather hysterical reaction on the part of the chicken!
Cartoonists are masters of simple lines conveying lots of meaning. Take your time to read the pictures as this is cartoon gold. I adored it when I read it and happily reread it several times. But the proof of a picture book hit is sharing it as a read aloud. I shared it with a small group this morning and the audience loved the group reading. They were fully engaged throughout and laughed out loud frequently. We even did a little predicting.
I will be adding it to a wordless unit the ELL teacher and I do every few years. We are due to introduce it this January. It will do double duty both by reinforcing the English alphabet and allowing ELL learners to tell their own story.
Don't miss this Vimeo between Victoria Stapleton and Patrick McDonnell discussing the story and art. And run, don't walk to pick up a copy to read aloud, to give as gifts, to recommend to your favorite readers. Remember, one is never too old for picture books!
32 p. Clarion/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, October, 2013. 9780618756612. (Borrowed from the public library.)
This is just brilliant - a wonderful confluence of realistic cat behavior and fantasy. Mr. Wuffles disdains a variety of cat toys laid out for his pleasure, most still sporting price tags save one metal structure reminiscent of two sieves mounted on a tripod. Five little green men peer out of the oblong window and begin to congratulate one another in a symbolic language until two cat's eyes appear in their window. They are suddenly upended. Mr. Wuffles has found a toy worthy of his attention!
Luckily, the five little green men are mostly unharmed, but their equipment is not. They decide that they must go in search of ... what? Not sure, but as they attempt to sneak behind Mr. Wuffles, they are discovered and surely lost, except a lady bug flies into Mr. Wuffles face, distracting him and allowing the aliens to escape underneath a nearby radiator, where they discover art on the walls reminiscent of cave paintings depicting the cat doing battle with insects.
The aliens are then greeted by the insects, photos are taken, gifts are exchanged and, even though the languages are different, they manage to communicate. Mr. Wuffles remains standing guard outside, much to the bewilderment of his owner. The insects cull a pencil, a marble and an M & M from the detritus that has rolled underneath the radiator and the aliens find them useful for repairing the device that was broken. Now, to get past Mr. Wuffles.
This gem will soon be added to the wordless collection at my school. It is a 2013 favorite. Will this win the author/ illustrator his fourth Caldecott or his second Honor? I love the author photo
unpgd. Candlewick Press, August, 2013. 9780763660536. (Finished copy courtesy of publisher for review.)
A lonely girl, ignored by family members involved with gadgets (nod to hello, hello by Matthew Cordell) finds a red crayon, and literally opens a door to a whole new world (Hello, Harold and the purple crayon.), which she floats through in a red row boat (shades of Tuesday by David Wiesner?).
Journey celebrates the power of the imagination in richly detailed art that begs long luxurious gazing. I love how the only color in the the girl's sepia-toned world were in her decidedly low-tech playthings, scooter, kite and ball. She also seems to have a true moral compass as she does not hesitate to rescue a caged purple bird heavily guarded by intimidating armored warriors. When the bird returns the favor, and the red crayon that was lost in the fray, the two plot escape on a red carpet. The bird shows the girl a purple door, through which she finds a boy with a purple crayon and a friendship is born.
Journey was named a NYT Best Illustrated Book of 2013; it has shown up on quite a few additional year-end "Best" lists and I expect to see it come awards season. It's a 2013 favorite of mine. Journey would be a great addition to the wordless book collection.
Unpgd. Picture Window Books/ Capstone, September, 2013. 9781623700362. (Review copy courtesy of publisher.)
This lovely wordless picture book follows a young boy as he leaves his home country to travel on an airplane to a new city complete with a new language. The sights and sounds of the city begin to overwhelm him as soon as he arrives. By the time he gets to his new apartment, he is quite done, but remembers a small seed stowed in his pocket and takes comfort in the memory of home that seed brings.
As the days pass, he tries to get acclimated. The signs are all a jumble of letters, school is just a jumble of bla, bla, bla. His mother tries to encourage him to get out and about in the neighborhood. But he doesn't want to - until he accidentally drops his seed and a young girl picks it up and skip-ropes away leaving the boy to run after her. As he treks after her, he begins to recognize people and places in what is becoming his new home.
The illustrations are colorful, evocative and flow beautifully from one to the other. They convey the myriad of emotions this young boy must be facing from confusion to anxiety to anger to hope and happiness.
Perfect for language arts as well as ESL classes, the book can be used as a writing prompt or a comfort read, as many newly arrived students will see themselves in the pages. Great addition to your collection of wordless stories!
