Short lines of soothing, rhythmic stanzas accompany a beautiful story of color through nature’s seasons, starting and ending in spring and revolving around a particular boy and his family. Magical diction in the text describes the colors and items associated with each season, ending regularly in a format tying back to the color green: “Lemonade, sunflakes, and yellow on green.” Even as the seasons change to a brown fall and a white winter, and there is little to no green to be seen, the tie back to green remains, prompting what may be a deeper message. Perhaps green means bounteous blessings and life as a whole, rather than just the last green blades of grass or weighty pine needles covered in snow, thus paralleling the mother’s growing stomach during her pregnancy and birth of her second child. The gorgeous illustrations use watercolor, gouache, and colored pencils to lovingly portray favorite features associated with each season, such as lemonade, the beach, peaches, and deer tracks in the snow, though the piercing blue eyes of the characters feel out of place in the otherwise peaceful display. Ultimately, White’s colorful text and Sala’s original illustrations combine to create an advanced expression of color throughout the year.
"The rhythmic text practically sings of the shifting seasons, as spring turns to summer, summer to fall, and so on, while the matte illustrations reveal the child’s curiosity, the family’s bonds, and the mother’s growing roundness as they all prepare for the birth of a baby."
Growing up, I never planned to become a writer. My sister was the storyteller in our family and that was just fine by me. I loved reading books, playing music, and learning new languages. Years later, when I became an elementary school teacher, all three “favorites” followed me into the classroom. During the day, I read great books, sang, and even taught kids who were learning English for the first time. At night, I practiced writing picture books. I did that for many years! Today, I’m lucky enough to write full-time. When I’m not at my desk, I’m usually outside, enjoying the sunshiny goodness of Arizona.
Felicita is a self taught illustrator. She graduated in Philosophy from the University of Western Australia. She has illustrated several picture books, such as Mr.Crum’s Potato Predicament, Big Foot and Little Foot, She Made a Monster and Ode to an Onion. She is the author and illustrator of Lunch at n.10, Pomegranate Street. She draws inspiration from folk art and music, mid-century illustration, byzantine iconography, nature, and children. She lives in Rome with her husband and their daughter, Nina.
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