Posted by Casey on Monday, Apr 4, 2016
New to the picture book scene, The Fan Brothers, have created an instant classic, The Night Gardener. Combining the sketch stylings of famous picture book artists such as Maurice Sendak and Peter McClosky with digital color, this is a picture book that is truly modern with vintage flare.
William, a young orphan, lives on a street devoid of color, Grimloch Lane. Everything changes overnight when a mysterious stranger creates topiary art on his street. Over the course of the summer more topiaries appear, this is accompanied by a shift from sepia toned sketches to full color spreads. This is a must read picture book for young and old alike and definitely a contender to look for in ICPL's upcoming mock Caldecott awards this fall.
About the Author
Casey buys books for ICPL's youngest readers. However, she enjoys reading books of all shapes and sizes. You can find her at the Children's Desk, out and about at one of our area preschools, or providing in-house programming like StoryJAM.
The Hidden World of Gnomes is stunning! A long-form picture book without chapters, this is an excellent choice for newly independent or graphic novel exclusive readers and confident lap-sitters. Pair with Phoebe Wahl's Little Witch Hazel for a magical long-form storytime. -Casey