My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Note: Review of the Advance Reader Edition | Book Release Date: October 3, 2017 | Roaring Brook Press
Dan Santat has this way of crafting together a masterpiece through illustration and word that moves the heart. A good picture book isn’t too wordy. A great picture book chooses its words wisely and graces the pages with purpose and exudes the power to provoke thought and affect change. After the Fall (How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again) is one of those great books and by every means is award worthy.
As a Caldecott Medalist, Dan Santat gives us another beautiful book with pictures that grab the reader’s attention and engages them in a tale they won’t soon forget. Yes, Humpty Dumpty fell down (that’s what we all know him for) but that is not where his story ends and I love this because this is real life. Yes, we might stumble and fall down but we can’t let that fall cripple us and keep us from getting right back up and trying again. As powerful a message this is, Santat, handles it with the charm and humor we have come to love him for. In the end, I do believe my students will be inspired to 1) face their fears, 2) recognize that we all fall down, and 3) feel empowered in the face of obstacles to persevere.
Now without giving anything away, I just have to say that I love the page that shares Humpty’s distressing walk down the cereal aisle. My husband gets to listen to my enthusiasm daily over the books I read and when I showed him that page we were all ‘cracked up.’ There’s even humor in the colors that Dan chooses. Trust me you will get your laugh on. All I can say is Grown-Up Food, Sad Clown, and Bo-Rings.
As a school librarian, I love that I get to share my passion for reading every day with my students. It is stories like After the Fall that makes my job that much easier! Please do your students a favor and buy several copies of this book for them to enjoy. Today!
Check Out the Website for After the Fall
CeCeLibrarian’s Book Blog 