I get so tired of so many children's books. Why are they SO SO boring so much of the time? Please read this one to your children. It is really good. The illustrations are very nice and Lucas is a good writer.
Being shy is hard, but totally natural. I always want to blend in to my surroundings just like Halibut, and often Margaret does too, so I know that she totally related to him. Plus he looks so adorable in his suits that match even his armchair in his own home, when he stays there alone. Lucas shows a picture of Halibut in his suit and armchair and explains that he mostly likes to stay inside. In a single picture and a few words, Lucas demonstrates that Halibut is not even transparent to himself--in order to feel shy around yourself, there have to be multiple selves that one is composed of. That opacity to oneself is one of the most interesting things I think about the self. The ability to not know parts of you, or for one part of yourself to be shy around another part of yourself. And to make all of that into something that everyone understands is so good.
And then at the end, Halibut inadvertently makes himself stand out at a garden party. His gold and silver suit is a wild success and ends up providing him with the means to make a living by opening a suit-making store. Of course--this is a nice message, "overcome your fears and people will love you." Maybe it is a little cliche, but still very well done.
No comments:
Post a Comment