FICTION

The Book from Far Away

by Bruce Handy (text) & illus. by Julie Benbassat
Astra/Minerva. Aug. 2023. 48p. Tr $18.99. ISBN 9781662651335.
COPY ISBN
PreS-Gr 1–In this lavishly illustrated wordless book, a young child plays in a treehouse and has a magical afternoon with a family of extraterrestrial beings. The human child and the extraterrestrial child are not gendered; both sets of parents are clearly cued as mothers and fathers. Most of the spreads follow the human child looking in awe and exploring the bucolic world of the treehouse and the surrounding lands. Through the child’s wandering, readers meet the visiting family of extraterrestrials, drawn as celestial heads, bodies, torsos, legs, and segmented arms. Ultimately the extraterrestrial and the human become fast friends, playing with each other and trading stories. The full-color artwork has scultural shading and shadowing in a realm of round shapes and few sharp angles.
VERDICT S Recommended for libraries looking for books with diverse representations and about curiosity and friendship.
Reviewed by Vi Ha , Dec 22, 2023

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