Picture books are a major part of most early reader’s lives. While looking through many options, the two picture books I’ve chosen to review this week are Wolf in the Snow by Matthew Cordell and Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dream for Me by Daniel Beaty and illustrated by Bryan Collier
Cordell, Matthew. Wolf in the Snow. Feiwel & Friends, 2017. 48 pages. $19.99, ISBN 978-1250148315.
Cold and alone, yet hauntingly beautiful, Wolf in the Snow portrays the story of a young girl and a wolf pup lost in the snow without the use of nearly any words. We follow the story through beautiful illustrations with only the sounds being made by the creatures along the way, of how a girl and wolf pup rescue one another.
Targeted to children who might not yet know how to read, aged 2-5, the story can easily be followed through the pictures alone. The words that are minimal and only help support how the characters are feeling in the moment. Watching the story unfold, it is easy to see what exactly is happening from page to page. This is a story as old as time, understanding one’s differences and helping each other, nonetheless. It portrays that the more we are different, the more we are also the same.
Beaty, Daniel. Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dream for Me. Illustrated by Bryan Collier. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2013. 44 pages. $18.99, ISBN 978-0316400947.
What would you do if the one person who mattered most to was taken away from you? This is the story about a boy discovering his father won’t be there to help him with his homework, teach him how to shave, watch him grow up into the man he most idolizes; his father. The story is harrowing but targets such an important group of children who might not have their fathers around for varying reasons. The author states in a note at the end of the story it’s based on his own childhood growing up while his father is incarcerated. Knock Knock tells the story of many kids who don’t have that adult figure in their lives.
The illustrations, though beautiful, are hard to follow as the story progresses. For children, some of the messages might be lost, but we can see an over arching theme throughout the pages as the boy grows older. It helps tell the story of a boy growing up and succeeding because it’s what his father wanted him to do. The illustrations do show a sense of movement and the passing of time with how the lines are drawn in waves around each page. It makes you feel something when looking at the illustrations, even if I, myself, find them confusing. The message of the story is still highly relevant for kids experiencing loss of any kind.
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