Teacup

August 22, 2016
Ottley’s (Parachute) ravishing paintings of ocean and sky distinguish this story, Australian writer Young’s first for the U.S. market. Young opens with a jolt—“Once there was a boy who had to leave his home... and find another—but Ottley’s first spread softens the blow. The boy stands on a wave-washed beach beside a wooden boat, apprehensive, yet ready for adventure. His few possessions include a teacup, which holds “some earth from where he used to play,” and his journey alternates between terror and serenity. One spread shows his boat riding up the face of a massive wave (“the boy held tightly to his teacup”), while in another, three dolphins cavort around the boat in tranquil seas. As the boy grows lonelier (“The way the whales called out to one another reminded him of how his mother used to call him in for tea”), a seed hidden in the soil in his teacup begins to grow, ready to bear fruit when he finally makes landfall; a companion appears not long after. Ottley’s paintings offer readers a thrilling share in the boy’s adventure. Ages 4–8.

In a book that combines short, poetic sentences with dramatic visual art, a light-skinned boy, needing a new home, sets off to sea in a rowboat.As the boy begins his odyssey, his knapsack contains only "a book, a bottle, and a blanket. In his teacup he held some earth from where he used to play." Vast expanses of sea and sky are conveyed both in monumental oil paintings and by the white or colored negative space of some double-page spreads. The text and artwork complement each other to produce a journey that combines elements of reality and dreamlike images. The palette ranges from pale to vibrant, and details are striking--the boy's lengthening hair, sun dappling a birch. Ominous clouds never become horrific; hardships such as hunger are not addressed. The rhythm of the text, as well as its gentle alliterations and occasional rhymes, makes it an excellent bedtime read-aloud. There is poignancy--and mystery--in "how things can change with a whisper." Why did the boy leave his beloved home? Readers are never told, making this book a potent discussion starter. The care given to both art and text elevate the simplicity of the life-is-a-journey-fraught-with-uncertainty message. The delightful results of his determination to hold onto his soil-filled teacup and an unexpectedly sweet ending add to that message the notion that those who strive and dream will eventually thrive. Enchanting, beautiful, and full of hope. (Picture book. 3-8) COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from October 1, 2016

PreS-Gr 3-In this moving, allegorical tale, a young boy searches for a new homeland, taking with him only a book, bottle, blanket, and teacup full of earth from where he used to play. His solo sea journey is fraught with danger, and loneliness plagues him in the dark. The child finds comfort in the way the whales sing to one another, stirring memories of how his mother used to call him in for tea. In time, a sturdy apple tree grows in his teacup and provides shelter, shade, and food. After the boy puts down roots in a new land, hope and friendship appear on the horizon when a girl with a broken eggcup arrives. Ottley's exquisite, expansive oil paintings of the small boy in his boat, bravely rowing against roiling waves, capture a vulnerable aloneness. The language is spare and poetic, and many words and images will linger with readers, inspiring reflection and empathy: "The way the clouds slowly swam into view/reminded him of how things/can change/with a whisper." VERDICT A beautifully crafted story that's perfect for sharing aloud and discussing with a small group.-Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ont., Canada

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 1, 2016
Preschool-G *Starred Review* In gorgeously illustrated seascapes, Young and Ottley tell a lyrical tale of leaving home and finding a new one. With a bundle of belongings, including a teacup containing earth from his homeland, a boy sets sail in a rowboat. His journey is marked by both calm seas and stormy ones, dark nights and bright days, and all the while, he wistfully recalls his old life. As time passes, the cup of dirt sprouts a gnarled apple tree, which sustains the boy until he finally finds a place to land. Ottley uses glowing tones to great effect in his spare paintings, and his compositions, full of vast swaths of unbroken ocean and with grand billowing clouds in the distance, emphasize the enormity of the boy's journey. Meanwhile, the reflection of the sky on the sea is at times so crystal clear that the perspective often goes thrillingly topsy-turvy. While the journey and its inherent uncertainty is naturally a fitting metaphor for growing up, connections to actual sea travel and subtle hints about turmoil in the boy's homeland suggest connections to immigration stories as well. There's much to ponder here, and with an ending involving a fellow traveler and her eggcup of dirt, little ones likely have lots of questions about family, home, and belonging. This pleasantly minimalist and contemplative story is quietly thought-provoking and arrestingly beautiful.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2017
"Once there was a boy who had to leave his home...and find another." So begins a lad's solo journey by boat with few possessions, among them a teacup full of earth that grows into a food-and-shelter-providing tree. Equal parts parable and poem, Young's story, which features stormy seas and creatures seemingly spun from clouds, is tailor-made for Ottley's impasto art.

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from August 1, 2016
In a book that combines short, poetic sentences with dramatic visual art, a light-skinned boy, needing a new home, sets off to sea in a rowboat.As the boy begins his odyssey, his knapsack contains only a book, a bottle, and a blanket. In his teacup he held some earth from where he used to play. Vast expanses of sea and sky are conveyed both in monumental oil paintings and by the white or colored negative space of some double-page spreads. The text and artwork complement each other to produce a journey that combines elements of reality and dreamlike images. The palette ranges from pale to vibrant, and details are strikingthe boys lengthening hair, sun dappling a birch. Ominous clouds never become horrific; hardships such as hunger are not addressed. The rhythm of the text, as well as its gentle alliterations and occasional rhymes, makes it an excellent bedtime read-aloud. There is poignancyand mysteryin how things can change with a whisper. Why did the boy leave his beloved home? Readers are never told, making this book a potent discussion starter. The care given to both art and text elevate the simplicity of the life-is-a-journey-fraught-with-uncertainty message. The delightful results of his determination to hold onto his soil-filled teacup and an unexpectedly sweet ending add to that message the notion that those who strive and dream will eventually thrive. Enchanting, beautiful, and full of hope. (Picture book. 3-8)

COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.