Richard Jackson was a long-time editor at Atheneum Books for
Young Readers and the critically acclaimed author of a number of
books, including Have A Look, Says Book., illustrated by Kevin
Hawkes, which Publishers Weekly proclaimed “a shoe-in for
the bedtime rotation;” All Ears, All Eyes, illustrated by
Katherine Tillotson; and This Beautiful Day, illustrated
by Suzy Lee, which received three starred reviews.
Suzy Lee is the critically acclaimed illustrator and author of many
books for children including Wave, which was awarded the Gold Medal
for Original Art by the Society of Illustrators and was a New York
Times Best Illustrated Book; Shadow, which was a New York Times
Best Illustrated Children’s Book; and Open This Little Book, which
was awarded the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for Excellence in
Children’s Literature (Picture Book Honor Winner). She lives and
works in Seoul, South Korea.
With colors and compositions conceived to celebrate the allure of
water, the book jacket and opening scenes immediately recall Lee's
The Wave (2008).Three bored children, stuck inside while it pours,
are rendered in pencil, with paper-white skin. When the boy turns
on the radio, blue swirls of music animate the space; even the
stuffed rabbit's ears perk up. As dance connects music and water,
the children skip out into the puddles. Jackson's words wisely
allow room for Lee's imagination. He makes no reference to rain;
that interpretation of a "beautiful day" is the illustrator's. The
story is propelled by the author's spirited verses, featuring
internal and end-of-line rhymes that scan with only an occasional
bump: "This beautiful day… / so great for parading, // for
cartwheeling fun / or hiding / and seeking // or gliding / and
sliding / in this marigold sun." Listeners will track the momentum
of these kinetic kids as they swing from trees with friends,
parachuting back to earth with umbrellas à la Mary Poppins.
Digitally manipulated acrylics in summery shades fill the pages as
the day brightens, offering another take on the title. Popsicles,
paired with an e.e. cummings-esque arrangement of "doodly-doo"s and
parenthetical bodily sounds, relax this jazzy, pizzazz-y romp—until
the wind whips up. A delightful depiction of the ability of
children to find joy regardless of atmospheric conditions. (Picture
book. 3-6)
*6/1/17*
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