Pamela Zagarenski

When her teacher gives her a special collection of stories, the young girl in The Whisper is ecstatic, rushing home in order to enjoy them at her leisure. But although the book is beautifully illustrated, she is distressed to discover that it contains no words. "It's just not a book of stories, without any words, she thought." But then a whisper of encouragement comes her way, instructing her to supply her own words... and so begins a storytelling project in which the beautiful paintings show more inspire the girl to create her own tales...

A gorgeous book, both visually and textually, The Whisper is a tribute to the beauty and strength of words, the power of storytelling, and the capacity of art to stir the imagination. This is a rich book, one which rewards rereading, as there are so many details of both art and story that might be lost at first, but which add to the reader/peruser's pleasure. I loved the fox character - no surprise there, given my personal and research interest in all things vulpine - and came away wondering whether it was the fox who was the source of the whisper which encourages the girl. Certainly, it is she (the fox) who is looking in the window when the girl hears the whisper. However that may be, the fox runs like a thread throughout the tale, appearing on almost every page, and offering a revised retelling of the classic Aesopian fable of The Fox and the Grapes as the conclusion of the story here. Of course, there are many such threads, and the beauty of Pamela Zagarenski's book is that it is for the reader to choose the thread that speaks most to them, and follow it through the book. Recommended to anyone who appreciates beautiful picture-book art, or who is looking for more thoughtful picture-book stories. show less

When Henry and his family go for a walk in Nearby Wood, and the young boy loses his stuffed lion Leo, no one seems to understand how serious of a situation it is. His well-intentioned family try to comfort Henry by telling him that Leo isn't real, but the boy thinks of Leo as his best friend, and knows that he is as real as anyone else. As Henry goes to bed worried, the lost Leo enlists the aid of various woodland creatures in getting himself home, leading to a happy reunion the following show more day.

As expected, given Pamela Zagarenski's previous work, Henry & Leo is an astonishingly beautiful book, one that rewards a slow reading, and then a reading again, to allow oneself to fully appreciate the engrossing visual landscape that it presents. The tale itself is a sweet one, emphasizing the importance of 'imaginary' (or are they?) friends and experiences in childhood, but the true pleasure lies in the artwork. This is a partially wordless book - Leo's journey home, chronicled in the middle portion of the book, is told entirely through the illustrations - allowing readers to fill in portions of the narrative themselves, just as Henry no doubt will, once reunited with Leo. Zagarenski's sylvan landscapes are as magical here as they were in her earlier Whisper, and I was charmed to see a reappearance of her fox. Recommended to fans of the artist, and to anyone looking for children's stories addressing imaginary and/or toy friends. show less

A little girl's teacher lets her borrow a magical book of stories. On the girl's way home, the words flow out of the book (and are captured by a clever fox with a net). At home, the little girl is distraught to find the beautiful pictures with no words to go with them, but a small whisper suggests "You can imagine the words. You can imagine the stories."

What follows is a series of beautiful illustrations, accompanied by the stories the girl makes up for each one (see also: Harris Burdick by show more Chris Van Allsburg). The girl imagines a story for each page. On her walk to school the next day, she meets the fox, who offers her the bag of words; in exchange, she helps him reach some grapes on a tree. The final endpaper is a revised version of "The Fox And The Grapes."

A gorgeously illustrated exercise in imagination and storytelling. show less

I loved this book. It captures the power of imagination and the power of the words we use to shape our thoughts and our reality. At the end of the story a well known fable of Aseop is turned on it’s head and a sour fox wins some sweet grapes, because “she imagined her story differently.” The whisper itself – the girl’s subconscious? – reveals that one has the ability to create a desired outcome. It says, “Remember: beginnings, middles, and ends of stories can always be changed show more and imagined differently.” The illustrations are dreamlike and bursting with originality and imaginativeness. show less