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adrianwelsh's review against another edition
3.0
2018 children’s book award finalist from Goodreads reading list. We thought it would be fun to read a few of the books from the award list and deliver our thoughts.
I thought this book started out great and was going to go into the science of light and colors. It did not go that direction. It kind of fizzled out and maybe got weird. But, my seven-year-old daughter enjoyed reading this one to me. 2.5 stars
Jovie’s rating: 4 stars
Jovie’s review:
What was the book about?
About this little girl, her friends say the ocean is blue and the sky is blue but when she puts the water in her hands, it’s as clear as glass. When she sprays it in the air, she says it’s as clear as diamonds. But, to me, it doesn’t.
What was your favorite part of the story?
I like how she says the crows look like inkblots.
What did you not like about the story?
The ending was weird.
Tell me about the characters.
The little girl, crows, her mom
What kind of book is it?
A picture book.
Tell me about the illustrations/drawings.
They were ok.
Did you like the book? Why or why not?
Yes, just because. She sprouts into a tree and it looks weird.
Did some parts make you laugh?
No.
What kind of people would like this book?
Families.
I thought this book started out great and was going to go into the science of light and colors. It did not go that direction. It kind of fizzled out and maybe got weird. But, my seven-year-old daughter enjoyed reading this one to me. 2.5 stars
Jovie’s rating: 4 stars
Jovie’s review:
What was the book about?
About this little girl, her friends say the ocean is blue and the sky is blue but when she puts the water in her hands, it’s as clear as glass. When she sprays it in the air, she says it’s as clear as diamonds. But, to me, it doesn’t.
What was your favorite part of the story?
I like how she says the crows look like inkblots.
What did you not like about the story?
The ending was weird.
Tell me about the characters.
The little girl, crows, her mom
What kind of book is it?
A picture book.
Tell me about the illustrations/drawings.
They were ok.
Did you like the book? Why or why not?
Yes, just because. She sprouts into a tree and it looks weird.
Did some parts make you laugh?
No.
What kind of people would like this book?
Families.
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.