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jdgcreates's review against another edition
2.0
I found the writing a bit disjointed and the art was mostly lovely but sometimes underwhelming...
garlicgrl's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
tashrow's review against another edition
5.0
This rich picture book looks at colors and inspires children to look deeper at what the colors inspire. While the sky is blue, so is water, until you hold it in your hand and it is clear and sparkles like diamonds when tossed in the air. There are hidden bright colors like the gold of an egg yolk and the red of blood in our bodies. Golden waves of the field look like they could be sailed on with a boat. Until the gray clouds come. Seasons bring their own colors. Black is the color of hair and also the crows outside the window who fly off into the colorful sky.
This is one of those books that you can read over and over again, different words and illustrations touching you each time. For a picture book for very young children, it has an unexpected depth, inviting children to see in a new way as they experience their days. The playfulness of color and imagination delight. The illustrations are exceptional, created with acrylic paint and PhotoShop. Rich and filled with color and sweeping lines, they carry the reader away into dreams of seasons, weather and wonder. A great picture book. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
This is one of those books that you can read over and over again, different words and illustrations touching you each time. For a picture book for very young children, it has an unexpected depth, inviting children to see in a new way as they experience their days. The playfulness of color and imagination delight. The illustrations are exceptional, created with acrylic paint and PhotoShop. Rich and filled with color and sweeping lines, they carry the reader away into dreams of seasons, weather and wonder. A great picture book. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
debnanceatreaderbuzz's review against another edition
3.0
A girl examines all the colors of her world in a new and novel way. Glorious illustrations.
hypops's review against another edition
4.0
Because good books for young children must improve with repeated readings and must sound better read aloud than read silently to oneself, there is a profound lyricism to the best children's literature. Words can seem to read themselves into life and illustrations carry your eye easily from page to page.
Jillian Tamaki's They Say Blue makes that lyricism an almost literal "passage" through the book. The main character is shown in a fashion resembling Etienne Jules Marey's motion photographs from the late 19th century (multiple exposures of people and animals in motion on a single plate). She almost seems to float across each page. It is a meditation on color that is also a meditation on transformation (color to color, season to season, vision to vision, object to object). Color transitions parallel changes in subject, weather, and/or place, and as the book goes on, the speaker develops an emotional longing or ache for enchantment and beauty.
These are heavy feelings for a book aimed at very young audiences. But it's also a testament to Tamaki's skill as a storyteller and artist that it never seems like too much. The colors and illustrated transformations are done so beautifully, vividly, and memorably that it all is alluringly dreamlike, despite being about the inevitability of disillusionment and the unavoidable loss of wonder.
Jillian Tamaki's They Say Blue makes that lyricism an almost literal "passage" through the book. The main character is shown in a fashion resembling Etienne Jules Marey's motion photographs from the late 19th century (multiple exposures of people and animals in motion on a single plate). She almost seems to float across each page. It is a meditation on color that is also a meditation on transformation (color to color, season to season, vision to vision, object to object). Color transitions parallel changes in subject, weather, and/or place, and as the book goes on, the speaker develops an emotional longing or ache for enchantment and beauty.
These are heavy feelings for a book aimed at very young audiences. But it's also a testament to Tamaki's skill as a storyteller and artist that it never seems like too much. The colors and illustrated transformations are done so beautifully, vividly, and memorably that it all is alluringly dreamlike, despite being about the inevitability of disillusionment and the unavoidable loss of wonder.
danilacy's review against another edition
5.0
I LOVE this one more than words can say. To so fully capture the magic of both colours and childhood? Jillian, you're amazing.
ellielabbett's review against another edition
3.0
A mindful book which follows a stream of a child's obervations as she makes real and imaginary connections with the world. A gentle story, but I get a feeling that the absence of narrative might leave this story falling flat if read aloud to a class. I may be wrong, but I feel this story would be enjoyed so much more if slowly explored alone or with a small group.
mat_tobin's review against another edition
5.0
A beautiful meditation on the unfiltered curiosity of a child, Tamaki's debut follows a young girl through her day and finishes with a new dawn. The title itself is an indicator of the central theme of the book which is one child's questioning of the world from her own perspective and that of those who have told instructed her on it. Who the 'they' are, we can only assume, but that those voices carry an authoritative weight is clear.
In washes of acrylic on watercolour paper and photoshop, Tamaki captures the wonder and grace of a child exploring the world. She begins by reflecting on the sky, the sea and its denizens:
'They say the sea is blue, too. It certainly look like it from here. But when I hold the water in my hands, it's as clear as glass.'
The young protagonist goes on to observe and questions many things around her from colours to animals. When she arrives home after a wet day, she imagines herself sprouting into the form of a tree. Silent and contemplative, she observes her inner imaginings through seasons until she falls to sleep.
An ode then to the young imagination, one not yet shackled by any monotony or lost to the lure of electronic media. This is a young child with dreams and questions about the world and, for me, her story is a much welcomed addition.
In washes of acrylic on watercolour paper and photoshop, Tamaki captures the wonder and grace of a child exploring the world. She begins by reflecting on the sky, the sea and its denizens:
'They say the sea is blue, too. It certainly look like it from here. But when I hold the water in my hands, it's as clear as glass.'
The young protagonist goes on to observe and questions many things around her from colours to animals. When she arrives home after a wet day, she imagines herself sprouting into the form of a tree. Silent and contemplative, she observes her inner imaginings through seasons until she falls to sleep.
An ode then to the young imagination, one not yet shackled by any monotony or lost to the lure of electronic media. This is a young child with dreams and questions about the world and, for me, her story is a much welcomed addition.
alexandraidonea's review against another edition
4.0
The watercolours are absolutely beautiful and the story gets a little bit surreal, which is different in a picture book. I like that this is not a typical children's picture book and the main character is a girl of color. (And the crows are an added bonus!)