Illustrated by Matt Rockefeller
4 stars
Honestly, I think Drawn Onward is a hard act to follow because that book is utter perfection.
When a young boy is told to clean his room, he’s overwhelmed by his emotions. They transform his home into an unfamiliar world filled with monsters. Luckily, his father is there to help lead him through the maze, encouraging him to use his five senses to manage his emotions.
The artwork in this book is stunning. Gorgeous fantasy elements and beautiful colors. I love all the different worlds presented and the emotions paired with them.
Explores feelings of fear, sadness, shame, confusion, and anger as well as learning to manage them by focusing on your sense of touch, hearing, taste, smell, and sight.
Personally, the pantoum structure didn’t work for me as well as the palindrome of the first book. It took me a few read throughs to fully grasp the story. There is a lot to the story and the text doesn’t always make it clear what is happening. However, I did find, like poetry in general, it was easier to follow when read aloud.
Still I really enjoyed the visuals and the pantoum style was very creative. An engaging way to learn about different forms of poetry.
It has some truly wonderful lines. “Confusion is a kind of haunting” is definitely a favorite.
A nice read overall. The creativity of the structure, story, and artwork is very impressive.