School Library Journal Review
| PreS-Gr 3-The Fan brothers' elegant illustrations and understated yet emotion-packed storytelling create a picture book that is at once mystical, magical, and magnetic. Finn, a boy of Asian descent who lives by the sea, remembers the stories his grandfather told him about a faraway place "where ocean meets sky." Today would have been Grandpa's 90th birthday, and Finn honors him by building a boat for the journey they had planned together. After cobbling together driftwood, an old tire, window frames, and other discarded materials, he crawls inside the vessel for a short nap. When he awakens, the boat is at sea; but this is no ordinary voyage. A massive golden fish with a mustache and goatee agrees to lead Finn to the destination described in his grandfather's tales. After visiting several amazing locales (including the Library Islands, where "bookish birds" roost and read), the boat lifts skyward ("or had the water fallen away?"). Finn glides through eye-catching spreads filled with wonders from ocean and air (a magnificent mélange of giant whales, submarines, sailing ships, dirigibles, hot air balloons, and more) toward a full moon with a very familiar and much-longed-for face. Summoned home by his mother's call, Finn stands on the seashore, looks to the moon, and acknowledges that "It had been a good day for sailing." Rendered in graphite and colored digitally, the artwork masterfully blends realistic details with soaring flights of fancy. VERDICT This grand adventure stirs imaginations while also celebrating a loving intergenerational relationship and providing comfort and closure after loss. Readers will want to share this affecting title one-on-one, with plenty of time to pore over the gorgeous artwork.-Joy Fleishhacker, Pikes Peak Library District, Colorado Springs © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. |
Booklist Review
| *Starred Review* Readers and listeners set sail for a surreal dreamscape in the Fan brothers' (The Night Gardener, 2016) newest offering, which follows a young boy's journey to where the ocean and sky meet. Through spare text and exquisite artwork (graphite drawings, digitally colored), the story unfolds as Finn builds a boat from scraps on the beach to find this magical place from his grandfather's tales. Awakening from a nap belowdecks, the boy discovers he is gently bobbing on the open water beneath white clouds resembling an elephant, a whale, and a pipe puffing smoke. As day turns to night, a giant whiskered catfish approaches Finn's boat and offers to guide him to where ocean meets sky. They pass incredible islands, until, finally, the air and sea merge. In a series of phantasmagoric spreads, a castle nestles in a cloud, ghostly jellyfish mingle with the stars, and Victorian airships sail alongside clipper ships and a blue whale. Finn sails by these wonders toward the large golden moon, whose smiling face is very much like that of his beloved grandfather's. This amorphous, imaginative adventure carries threads of grief and closure that will bypass most youngsters, but they will be enthralled by the magical illustrations and accepting of the notion that the fantastic worlds of dreams and stories truly exist.--Smith, Julia Copyright 2018 Booklist |
