Title: Outside
Author: Libby Hathorn
Illustrator: Ritva Voutila
Age Group: 1-8
Synopsis: A poetic story about the magical experiences of being outside.
The Low Down:
The first thing that Outside reminded me of was the new Tim Burton, Alice and Wonderland.
The illustrations are colorful, surreal, unique, whimsical even and they make each page oddly fascinating. They definitely border on the edge of strange but end up being endearing. Each illustration is lovingly completed with intricate detail that could be admired for much longer than it takes to read the page. I picked this up because I wanted to admire it further but was surprised when Bug chose it for afternoon reading. He tends to gravitate towards basic, vibrant illustrations. Outside’s pictures are much more mature in that aspect. I grabbed another book when we initally picked Outside up because I was sure we were going to read one page and then be done but he loved every page. He loved the rhymes, and the visual representation of the metaphors provided by the story (i.e. the bells chiming in the trees).
Each page begins with “What’s that?” and then has a verse about something to be discovered outdoors. The story implies that the older sister is explaining to her younger brother the joys of being outside. They’re cat follows along as they spend the entire day exploring their backyard. The final piece of each verse ends with “…under the fluttery leaves in the magical breeze in the summery sun outside.”
The only thing that I wasn’t a huge fan of was the cat and sheep. They’re illustrated with human faces and it’s oddly disturbing. Although, Bug didn’t mind at all so maybe it just weirds me out.
Story Tips:
- Every time we read fluttery leaves and magical breeze I made a wooshing noise and tickled Bug. He loved it. Of course, the page about tickly green grass is perfect for this too.
I need more!
Libby Hathorn has a long list of books available for persual at: http://www.libbyhathorn.com/ . Although, it hasn’t been updated recently as Outside isn’t even listed on the site. Ritva Voutila seems to be more up-to-date and has a great list of books: http://www.ritvavoutila.com. There are quite a few that I’m looking forward to reading specifically: The Stone Lion by Margaret Wild.
