Vessel of Promises: A Bookish Fable

As a river rises so slowly it’s imperceptible, an old woman dreams of impending destruction. The woman is part of the household of the biblical prophet and ark builder Noah, and as Noah is shown in shadowy background illustrations gathering animals, the woman begins to gather “promises” into a vessel. The promises mirror the animals simultaneously being gathered: “fast ones,” “slow ones,” and “young ones that could fit inside a shell.” When the waters again subside, the woman creates a space where the promises can be shared with others. In the closing line, the promises are revealed to be books, which continue to be available to readers at their own vessels of promises: their local libraries. While the celebration of books and libraries is a commendable message that all readers can appreciate, the opaque narrative and incredibly abstract illustrations of this “bookish fable” will likely make it most appealing and best suited for mature readers. The opening of the story, with a rising river and a woman’s foreboding dream, is intriguing, and there are enough clues along the way in both text and illustration that readers familiar with the biblical account of the flood will recognize the relation, but even the very astute may not deduce the promises’ symbolic representation of books. While a few lines are delightfully poetic—“The old woman gathered the ones that gathered dust”—some rhymes are hastily phrased, preserving a rhythmic cadence but impairing the sophistication of the fable.