journeys

The Forest of a Thousand Eyes by Frances Hardinge – Book Recommendation

| Tasha

The Forest of a Thousand Eyes by Frances Hardinge, illustrated by Emily Gravett (9781419777783)

Feather has never met a stranger before, since her community has been isolated along the decaying wall. So when he asks her for a favor, she helps him and manages to lose one of her group’s most valuable items, a spyglass for spotting oncoming danger. Now Feather must follow the stranger into along the wall and close to the dangers of the Forest where vines strangle and plants take over. Animals and insect grow huge and aggressive. As she travels, Feather finds safe places to hide at night, walking during the day and eventually finds small groups of other people living along the wall, each with their own societies and solutions for survival. Feather has to catch up to the stranger, save the spyglass and perhaps then she can return home to her family without disgrace.

As always, Hardinge’s text is extraordinary. She paints a vivid world being steadily devoured by the Forest and its invasive branches. Feather is such a small heroine against this sea of woods, the isolation of her journey, and the small moments of kindness. She shines against the darkness, alone and afraid but driven to fix what she has done. Gravett’s illustrations depict with some humor the daunting height of the wall, the dangers that Feather faces and the ingenuity of people in the face of destruction.

Perfect for sharing aloud thanks to the great pairing of text and illustration. Like Feather, this is a journey you must finish. Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from copy provided by Amulet Books.

My First Day by Phung Nguyen Quang

| Tasha
Cover image

My First Day by Phung Nguyen Quang and Huynh Kim Lien (9780593306260)

A boy heads out on his own to his first day of school. He lives on the Mekong River and takes a boat to school, this time all alone. He heads out as dawn is breaking in the sky, weaving along the river, through the waves, and entering the mangrove forest. The journey is long, with dark rainy weather at times that then becomes colorful skies. The forest is dark and seems to have creatures all over watching him travel. When he exits the forest, he can see fish skimming under the water, water buffalo along the shore, and soon his friends in their own boats heading to school!

Quang and Lien beautifully takes a universal experience of the first day of school and makes it unique to the Mekong Delta experience. Through this fascinating journey of natural wonder, the main character must be brave and resolute that he can do this by himself. The text is marvelous, quiet at times as the weather or the setting becomes oppressive and then soaring with relief and joy when the weather changes and his destination is in sight.

The illustrations are exceptional, drawing readers deep into the Mekong. The focus is on the boy’s experience, but the river itself is a character too. Its waters glimmer in the shallows with green light, darken with the rain, and are painted with algae green at the mouth of the forest. Dotted with lotus flowers, bubbles and cresting waves, the river and the boy experience this journey together.

A journey to school that is far more than crossing a busy street! Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy provided by Make Me a World.

Girl on a Motorcycle by Amy Novesky

| Tasha

Girl on a Motorcycle by Amy Novesky

Girl on a Motorcycle by Amy Novesky, illustrated by Julie Morstad (9780593116296)

It is 1973 in Paris, and the girl decides that she wants to wander and travel. One day she gets on a motorcycle and starts out, carrying everything she needs with her. Listening to the road before her, she sets out to ride around the world. From Paris, she flies to Montreal in Canada, riding across the country. She camps at night, swims under the Northern Lights, and heads to Alaska. From there, she flies to Tokyo then to Bombay. Sometimes her bike breaks down, but the road keeps calling. She goes through Afghanistan, Turkey, then Europe. Then she returns home to Paris, different from when she left.

This is the true story of Ann-France Dautheville, who was the first woman to ride a motorcycle around the world alone. For ten years, she traveled the world, including the four months that she made this journey told in the book. Novesky was inspired by a single photograph she saw, creating a picture book that celebrates the bravery and spirit of this woman. Using a unique approach of calling her “the girl,” the book invites readers to see themselves in Dautheville’s place, exploring on her own. Throughout the book, there is a merry sense of adventure, acknowledgement of the dangers, and a deep appreciation for life on the road.

Morstad’s art captures that same delight in the journey. From the items packed in her bags to the amazing landscapes she journeyed through, the art follows her travels. There are dark nights under Canadian’s trees, red flower days in India, sapphire rivers, and calming Buddhas. Told in vibrant yet simple illustrations, readers get a true sense of the scope of her ride.

A great book that exemplifies girl power, jump on this ride! Appropriate for ages 5-7.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Viking Books for Young Readers.

Review: Up the Mountain Path by Marianne Dubuc

| Tasha

Up the Mountain Path by Marianne Dubuc

Up the Mountain Path by Marianne Dubuc (9781616897239)

Every Sunday, Mrs. Badger walks to the mountain peak. Along the way, she greets her various animal friends and finds gifts to give others later. She helps anyone who needs it too. When a young cat asks to share Mrs. Badger’s snack, she invites the cat along to the mountaintop. They need to find the little cat her own walking stick and take breaks along the way, but the two eventually make it to the peak. They enjoy one another’s company and the trip so much that they continue to make the trek together again and again. Eventually, Mrs. Badger grows older and has to be the one taking breaks and finally she can’t make the trip any longer. The cat continues to make the walk, finding her own young animal to mentor on the way.

This gentle picture book has such depth to it. Mrs. Badger is a fabulous character, exhibiting deep kindness and thoughtfulness for others. She knows everyone she encounters on the walk and makes connections easily. She demonstrates how to make and keep friends with all of her actions. This becomes even more clear as she walks with the young cat, teaching them how to make the long climb to the peak. The book can be read as a metaphor for life but children can also simply enjoy the story of the friendly badger and a young cat who become friends.

Dubuc’s illustrations move from full pages of images to smaller unframed pictures that offer a varied feel throughout the book. She makes sure to have a special feeling when the characters make it to the mountaintop. The vista is striking but it is the journey itself that makes the book sing.

A quiet book about connections and community. Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

 

Father’s Road by Ji-yun Jang

| Tasha

Father's Road by Ji-yun Jang

Father’s Road by Ji-yun Jang, illustrated by Tan Jun, edited by Joy Cowley (9780802854728)

Released March 30, 2017.

Wong Chung is excited to join his father on the Silk Road as they travel west to sell silk in Constantinople. There are many dangers on the trip and new skills to learn. Traveling on camels, they have to brave the desert and conserve water along the way. Wong Chung learned to cover his face against the blowing sand and find water and even food along the way in unexpected places. Then just as the journey was nearing its end, bandits attack them and kidnap them, stealing their silk. A sandstorm hits the bandit camp and Wong Chung makes a decision that will decide their fate one way or another.

This picture book about the Silk Road transports readers into the harsh terrain and the harrowing journey that used to be the way that trade was done. Through the eyes of Wong Chung, readers learn about the dangers and the wonders of the trail. They also grow to understand the importance of honor and duty in the culture.

Textured papers form the background of the illustrations, offering colors of sand, red mountains and occasional green. Drawn in fine lines, the illustrations of the camels and people meld with the setting to form a unified whole. There is a lovely organic quality to the entire book, drawing readers further into the desert journey.

Part of the Trade Winds series, this picture book is a glimpse into a bygone time of hardship and adventure. Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Eerdmans Books for Young Readers.

Teacup by Rebecca Young

| Tasha

teacup-by-rebecca-young

Teacup by Rebecca Young, illustrated by Matt Ottley (InfoSoup)

A boy sets off in a boat, leaving his home behind with only a book, a bottle, a blanket and a teacup of earth from his homeland. The journey is long and filled with changing days at sea. Sometimes it is quiet, other times dangerous, other times dramatic. Then one day, the earth in his teacup begins to sprout, growing into a tree that shelters him, gives him food, and offers hope. Eventually, his boat bumps into land where he moves his tree to a hill and it grows taller. He waits for a whisper and when it comes, he discovers another traveler has joined him.

This is such a gentle book yet it speaks to larger issues of displacement, refugees and homelessness. Young’s text is poetic, creating moments of quietness and moments of wonder, often side-by-side. While we don’t truly get to know the boy himself, the book embraces the journey that people take into the unknown, whether that means leaving your family and country behind or starting a new school.

Ottley’s illustrations are stunningly beautiful. He captures the sea journey with a feeling of expansiveness, the boy and his boat small in the image and sky and sea vast around him. The clouds are immensely lovely, conveying menace and hope as appropriate to the story. These are illustrations to linger over and just feel.

A gorgeous allegory picture book sure to speak to those of us on longer  or shorter journeys in our lives. Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from ARC received from Dial Books.

 

Review: Sebastian and the Balloon by Philip C. Stead

| Tasha

sebastian and the balloon

Sebastian and the Balloon by Philip C. Stead

A little boy named Sebastian is having a very boring day even though he is up on the top of the roof where he’s never supposed to be.  So he decides to head on a journey.  First, he packs everything he needs, then he heads for the hot air balloon he made from his grandmother’s afghans and quilts.  He sets off and meets a bear next to a leafless tree.  He offers the bear a pickle sandwich and the bear joins him on his journey.  Flying in the fog, they hear a loud pop and find that a bird has flown into the balloon.  They land atop a a colorful worn house where three sisters help them knit their balloon together again.  As the three elderly ladies work, they mention the time that they went over the mountain as children and found a rollercoaster.  You can guess where they all headed next!

Stead has created a quiet and lovely book here.  It is an adventure book, but somehow it is imbued with a gentleness and dreaminess.  Perhaps it is the balloon flight, the drifting and silence and quiet of that mode of transportation.  Or it could be the fog, the friendly bear, and the three grandmothers.  It all adds up to a wonderfully whimsical book that dances along dreamily.

Stead’s illustrations are always a treat.  I love that his protagonist is a little boy of color, someone who glows against the background, who is resourceful, smart and creative.  The three grandmothers, each with their own color that is also represented in their home, are drawn with a humor that is gentle and gorgeous.  The entire book sings of whimsy and imagination.

Ideal for bedtime reading, this book is sure to create dreams of hot air balloon rides and an array of friends.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Roaring Brook Press.

Review: A Single Pebble by Bonnie Christensen

| Tasha

single pebble

A Single Pebble by Bonnie Christensen

Mei wished that she could travel to the market with her father, but she had to stay behind and care for their silk worms.  So Mei gave her father a jade pebble to take along and give to a child at the end of the Silk Road.  Though her father was only traveling part of the road, Mei was sure that her pebble could go all the way to the end.  Mei’s father gave the pebble to a traveling monk who was heading further west on the road.  The monk in turn gave the pebble and his flute to a young man who was going even farther west.  And so the pebble headed west from hand to hand and other objects joined it in a collection from “a girl in the land where the sun rises.”  Finally, after many hands and many people had cared for the pebble, it reached the hands of a young pirate who returned home to his family.  His son in Italy received that pebble at the same time that Mei got a piece of blue glass that their city in Italy specialized in.

Set in the 9th century, this book pays homage to the various peoples and communities, nationalities and religions along the Silk Road.  Readers will get a great sense of the length of this trading route thanks to Christensen’s story that makes it very concrete and connected.  The book also celebrates a good story, where the gifts multiply and all because the story surrounding them becomes more and more compelling as the pebble moves farther from home. 

Christensen’s art changes throughout the book.  The early pages are softened by the watercolor river and hazy trees in the backgrounds.  Moving further into the book, the images become more crisp and clear as the desert takes over the story.  The softness returns in Italy again with a different light than the one in China.  It is all delicately done and evokes both a connection between the two places but also real differences too.

A rousing journey of a book, this story is a celebration of the Silk Road.  Appropriate for ages 5-7.

Reviewed from copy received from Roaring Brook Press.

Review: Captain Cat by Inga Moore

| Tasha

captain cat

Captain Cat by Inga Moore

Captain Cat is a trader, but he’s not very good at making profitable deals.  You see, instead of trading for riches, he trades for cats.  So his ship is full of them.  All of the other traders make fun of him for this, but Captain Cat is very happy surrounded by the furry creatures.  He decides to head off and see new places, far from the trade routes he usually travels.  On the way, he is caught in a violent storm that blows him off course, right off the map!  There he discovers a small rocky island led by a young queen.  She and the population are very friendly, and have never seen cats before.  When the cats take care of the island’s rat problem, the queen begs Captain Cat to leave them behind.  What is a cat-loving caption to do?

This is a very engaging book.  It was different right off of the bat with a sailor surrounded by cats who hate water.  Throughout the story, it continues to surprise and delight.  It never heads where you expect it to, yet ends up being completely delightful both along the way and in the end.  Unlike many picture books, Moore tells a full story here.  It not only has the structure of a full story, but also has a depth that can be missing in picture books.

The illustrations are finely done with lots of details.  Done in mixed media, they have fine lines and soft colors.  Thanks to their detail, this book would best be used with small groups or individual children.

Take a feline-filled journey with this clever picture book.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.