I received this book for free from the library in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: the library
A Child of Books
by
Oliver Jeffers, Sam Winston
fantasy, picture book in a hardcover edition that was published by Candlewick Press on September 6, 2016 and has 36 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads or Amazon
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include The Great Paper Caper
A standalone picture book for children, promoting the wonders of reading.
My Take
It’s a little girl using first person point-of-view who shows a boy how amazing books are, allowing a reader to explore the world, showing him the miracle of story. And it’s a lovely bit of propaganda that encourages imagination *grin*.
There’s a touch of Peter Pan with the point about adults forgetting how wonderful story can be. And this story is possibly more perfect for adults than for children!
I love the pastedown and flyleaf with its close lines of text listing classic books and their authors, running the gamut from children’s to adult. Jeffers/Winston carry on into the story using text in shapes of waves, mountains, movement, direction, and more on every page.
The graphics are primarily the text and line drawings with an aged page the sail for the girl’s raft. Sometimes the blue of the trim around her sailor collar and the two lines at the hem of her dress appear, but each page has some color. Some less, and some much more. I think my favorite page is the forest of fairy tales with words the branches.
Just don’t forget, imagination is free.
The Story
A little girl sails her raft across a sea of words, arriving at the house of a small boy.
She invites him to go away with her on an adventure into the world of stories… where, with only a little imagination, anything at all can happen.
The Cover and Title
The cover has a deep brownish red background with an upright red hardcover book (the authors’ names are on its spine in gold) with a protruding gold lock on its front cover. Perched atop the book is a blue girl with pigtails and a sailor dress, looking to the right for the horizon. At an angle behind the book is a slanted paragraph of opening lines.
The title overtly refers to the little girl, but I see it as the authors’ interests, for they are A Child of Books.
