Monday, 3 October 2016
Are We There Yet? By Dan Santat (Andersen Children's Books)
So we count ourselves very lucky indeed to be looking at a very early proof of a paperback that you won't be able to buy until April next year! Phew, talk about getting in early with a review!
Dan Santat, Caldecott winning author-illustrator has a knack of producing the most gorgeous stories wrapped in the most fantastic art and in "Are We There Yet?" the age-old whiny phrase is given a new lease of life, thanks to a young boy's imagination.
It's time to go and visit Grandma for her birthday but she lives a long way away, so the family pack into the car and set out on their way.
The little boy doesn't mind the first few miles of the journey but after a while there's only so much entertainment to be gleaned from staring out of the window, or playing with a handful of toys.
But a child's imagination is limitless, and soon the journey becomes a trip through a dino-infested landscape, or an exercise in avoiding broadsides from pirate ships. Even joining a parade in Ancient Egypt or being flung far into the future still doesn't make the journey glide along any quicker. But soon they're at Grandma's house and the fantasy landscapes are left behind - or are they?
Dan Santat playfully explores the Picture Book medium and wields his skills with expert precision. We love that the book had us twisting and turning the whole thing this way and that to try and follow each imagined landscape (watch out for that when the book releases, I'm assuming it's intentional and not some crazy printing quirk!)
"Are We There Yet" is sublime but you'll have to wait till 6th April 2017 to grab your own copy, published by Andersen Children's Books
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