Synopses & Reviews
Winner of the 2011 Pure Belpre Award for fiction now in an elegant paperback edition!
From the time he is a young boy, Neftali hears the call of a mysterious voice. He knows he must follow it--even when the neighborhood children taunt him, and when his harsh, authoritarian father ridicules him, and when he doubts himself. It leads him under the canopy of the lush rain forest, into the fearsome sea, and through the persistent Chilean rain, until finally, he discovers its source.
Combining elements of magical realism with biography, poetry, literary fiction, and sensorial, transporting illustrations, Pam Muñoz Ryan and Peter Sís take readers on a rare journey of the heart and imagination.
Review
Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor
Pura Belpre Award winner
Booklist Editors' Choices
NYPL 100 Best Children's Book
A Kirkus Best Children's Book
*This book has all the feel of a classic, elegant and measured, but deeply rewarding and eminently readable.”Booklist, starred review
*
rich, resonant and enchanting.”Kirkus, starred review
*[A] masterful tribute.”Horn Book, starred review
*An immaculately crafted and inspiring piece of magical realism.”Publishers Weekly, starred review
*Absorbing
the perfect marriage of text and art.”School Library Journal, starred review
Ryans hypnotic text, inspired by the childhood of Pablo Neruda, is brought to life by the extraordinary art of Peter Sis.”New York Times Book Review
A phantasmagorical rumination on the childhood of the great Chilean poet Pablo Neruda is rooted in a belief that words possess the power to mend the spirit and change the world.”Smithsonian Notable List
Synopsis
Pura Belpre Award Winner
A tender, transcendent, and meticulously crafted novel from Newbery Honoree, Pam Munoz Ryan, and three-time Caldecott Honoree, Peter Sis
From the time he is a young boy, Neftali hears the call of a mysterious voice. Even when the neighborhood children taunt him, and when his harsh, authoritarian father ridicules him, and when he doubts himself, Neftali knows he cannot ignore the call. He listens and follows as it leads him under the canopy of the lush rain forest, into the fearsome sea, and through the persistent Chilean rain on an inspiring voyage of self-discovery that will transform his life and, ultimately, the world.
Combining elements of magical realism with biography, poetry, literary fiction, and transporting illustrations, Pam Munoz Ryan and Peter Sis take readers on a rare journey of the heart and imagination as they explore the inspiring early life of the poet who became Pablo Neruda."
Synopsis
Pura Belpr Award Winner
A tender, transcendent, and meticulously crafted novel from Newbery Honoree, Pam Mu oz Ryan, and three-time Caldecott Honoree, Peter S s
From the time he is a young boy, Neftal hears the call of a mysterious voice. Even when the neighborhood children taunt him, and when his harsh, authoritarian father ridicules him, and when he doubts himself, Neftal knows he cannot ignore the call. He listens and follows as it leads him under the canopy of the lush rain forest, into the fearsome sea, and through the persistent Chilean rain on an inspiring voyage of self-discovery that will transform his life and, ultimately, the world.
Combining elements of magical realism with biography, poetry, literary fiction, and transporting illustrations, Pam Mu oz Ryan and Peter S s take readers on a rare journey of the heart and imagination as they explore the inspiring early life of the poet who became Pablo Neruda.
About the Author
Pam Munoz Ryan is the recipient of the NEA's Human and Civil Rights Award and the Virginia Hamilton Literary Award for multicultural literature. She has written more than thirty books which have garnered, among countless accolades, the Pura Belpre Medal, the Jane Addams Award, and the Schneider Family Award. Pam lives near San Diego. You can visit her at www.pammunozryan.com.
Peter Sis is an internationally acclaimed illustrator, author, and filmmaker with more than twenty books to his credit. His picture book THE WALL: GROWING UP BEHIND THE IRON CURTAIN was a 2007 Caldecott Honor Book, and STARRY MESSENGER: GALILEO GALILEI and TIBET THROUGH THE RED BOX were Caldecott Honor Books. Peter Sis lives in the New York City area. You can visit him at www.petersis.com.