Review by Deborah K. Frontiera
What can you do with a wordless picture book? Oh, let me count the ways!
First, a parent or other adult can let a child, or children make up the story, and there can be many stories going on in the progression of the illustrations. Of course, the obvious one is what is printed on the back cover about a family taking a canoe trip in early spring through some of northern Minnesota’s Boundary water areas. But does it have to be that area? Or can it be anywhere the child imagines a forest, rivers and lakes to be? Even close to that child’s own back yard! Does it have to be the story of a family on a camping trip? Or can it be the story of the animals in the illustrations and what they think of the family passing by? Or a hundred other possible points of view?
Second, in the first three wide-spread pages—and other similar pages, too—adult and child or children could play a game of “what’s different?” between spreads one and two, or two and three. This leads to a great deal of vocabulary development when a child can see the differences but can’t name the animals, birds, or plants/trees he or she points to. This can lead to many questions like: What is the bird doing? How did the wolves get onto the ice, and how will they get back to land? (Oh, there’s another story.) Where are the mother bear and her cubs going? (and another story)
Third, adults and children can explore how the people feel along their trip—calling to attention the details in the expressions on their faces on various pages. How do you feel when you’ve caught a fish? Never caught one? Or pup yourself into another point of view. How might the fish feel? What about the child looking at the broken egg? Do mother birds grieve for lost babies? There are no right or wrong answers to any of these, just good discussions to make a child or a group of children think, be creative, and see unlimited possibilities.
While the illustrations are rich in accuracy and details, I did wish that the colors were brighter—the colors of spring are so welcome after a long dull winter of shades of white and gray. But then the review copy is not the real thing, and perhaps when the final product in hardcover is off the press, the colors will be richer.
How many more things can you think of to do with a wordless picture book?
That’s what you do with a wordless picture book.
Review One Spring Up North
By John Owens
