By Shaun Tan (mostly)
Arthur A. Levine Books, 2011
Genre
Picture Book
Awards
- Ditmar Award: Best Artwork - The Lost Thing (2011)
Review
This book combines three stories: The Red Tree, The Lost Thing, and The Rabbits. All three were illustrated by Shaun Tan, but The Rabbits is written by John Marsden. All of these stories are poignant reminders of times when we feel alone, out of place, or uncertain about where we belong and what our futures might look like. All are memorably illustrated with beautiful use of color, some pages continuing the stories with just pictures. Definitely intended for older tweens and teens, this book can still be appreciated by younger readers to an extent, though some words may be too difficult.
Opinion
The first story really hit me; it is a great description of feeling lost in the thralls of depression, mostly expressed through the art, which is sometimes the only way to express feelings like that. The story of The Lost Thing was also moving, reminding me of how we categorize people and how we often stop seeing things that appear out of place, because we are too busy with something else to help.
The first story really hit me; it is a great description of feeling lost in the thralls of depression, mostly expressed through the art, which is sometimes the only way to express feelings like that. The story of The Lost Thing was also moving, reminding me of how we categorize people and how we often stop seeing things that appear out of place, because we are too busy with something else to help.
Ideas
This is a good example of a picture book intended for an older audience and can be displayed as such. It's a great way to show older tween and teen readers that if they see books that look like children's picture books, that's not always who they are intended for.
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