Description
While banished to a dusty study one day "to think things over", a boy pulls a book off a shelf and with great reluctance begins to read. As the afternoon passes, the story nabs him and carries him away. Before long, this good little book becomes his loyal companion, accompanying him everywhere ... until, one day, the book is lost. Will this bad little boy get back his good little book? Will the good little book survive on its own without a proper jacket? A quirky, enchanting tale of literary love and loss -- and love found again -- that will win the heart of even the most reluctant reader.
Advance Praise
“When a boy heads to the study, ordered to ‘think things over,’ he begins a relationship with a book that becomes special to him, even if it has no 'proper jacket.' When the boy—initially sporting a scowl and a slouch—first opens the good little book, Arbona presents a compelling, sequential, aerial view of a sullen child who nonetheless becomes fascinated by reading. Vivid, fantastical artwork augments the ensuing … sentences about book-induced trips to faraway places and varied emotions. As the seasons pass, the book ‘didn't turn him into a bookish boy, or improve his naughty behavior, but it did become a loyal companion.’ At the story's climax—‘The boy lost his favorite book’—the boy seeks help in a crowd of people who appear as bizarre as the creatures in his book, thanks to the bold, colorful, absurdist artwork. It is easy to imagine an actor with an upper-class British accent reading the wryly humorous text: ‘The boy sought help but discovered that very few people have time for a lost book—no matter how good or little it might be.’ The simple plot reaches a conclusion rife with bibliophilic didacticism, but the humor and art along the way create an enjoyable romp. In a decade of de rigueur picture books praising books, it is primarily the artwork that sets this one apart.” — Kirkus Reviews
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781770494510 |
| PRICE | CA$19.99 (CAD) |
Links
Available on NetGalley
| (PDF) |
| (PDF) |
