Synopses & Reviews
and#160; All day, Whale swims through the ocean, wearing a poster advertising the big upcoming art exhibition. He visits the eel who wriggles abstract patterns in the sand, the squid who paints with ink, and the hammerhead shark who builds sculptures from salvage. Whale sees his friendsand#8217; confidence and creativity and wishes he could be an artist too, but he doesnand#8217;t know what to make and insists heand#8217;s too ungainly to create art. Then one day, with the unexpected help of some bioluminescent plankton, he discovers his own distinct point of view and talent.
From the award-winning author-illustrator of What Animals Really Like, hailed by School Library Journal as and#147;sublime silliness,and#8221; comes another inspiring tale about defying expectation and finding the artist within.
Praise for Whale Shines
STARRED REVIEW
"At its core, Robinsonand#8217;s (What Animals Really Like) story is a tried and true tale of a wallflower realizing his potential. But her understated, offbeat voice and visualsand#151;a mashup of classicism and graphic novel sensibilitiesand#151;makes this a standout: up-to-the-minute modern in its irreverence and offhandedness, yet timeless in its understanding of a characterand#8217;s yearning."
and#151;Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Sharp contrasts between light and dark are beautiful."
and#151;Kirkus Reviews
"Children will embrace and understand the sincere, undervalued message of art as substantive and a way to and#147;share oneand#8217;s world.and#8221; This inspiring tale of artistic collaboration between the whale and bioluminescent plankton will be shared again and again."
and#151;School Library Journal
"The watercolor and pencil art makes excellent use of the spreadsand#8217; wide horizontality; while the art projects and, indeed, the underwater world are on the literal side for such an artistic-themed story, thereand#8217;s a murky charm to life in the briny deep... Whatand#8217;s particularly appealing here is the casual inclusion of a wide variety of approaches to art, making this an entertaining lead-in to art projects, especially those involving the natural world."
and#151;Bulletin of The Center for Childrenand#8217;s Books
Synopsis
What use is a moose? A young girl and her family find outMolly loves moose-not the dessert, the animal. Imagine her surprise when on a family trip to Alaska she can't find any because they've all gone on vacation-to her home city! When Molly returns, she befriends a forlorn moose threesome exhausted from their urban adventures and she and her parents take the moose in.
Once rested, the moose prove to be invaluable: using their antlers as drying racks, pasta servers, clotheslines, and much more. Eventually the call of the wild summons them back to their real home. Will the domestic dynamos ever return? Or will Molly be mooseless?
Exciting newcomer Fiona Robinson brings a terrific sense of humor and great imagination to this perfect story-hour book, with lots of funny visual jokes.
About the Author
Fiona Robinson is the author-illustrator of
What Animals Really Like,
The Useful Moose: A Truthful, Moose-full Tale, and
The 3-2-3 Detective Agency. Her work has been honored by the Royal Academy of Arts and has been featured in many gallery shows. She lives with her family in Brooklyn.