Hello Lighthouse

With simple text and luminous artwork, Caldecott medalist Sophie Blackall spins the tale of a lighthouse-keeper and his life on "a tiny island at the edge of the world" in this newest picture-book. Joined in his solitary posting by his wife, the keeper performs all of his duties, from polishing the light's lens to winding the clockwork that keeps the light in motion, while also recording such momentous events as his daring rescue of some shipwrecked sailors and the birth of his first child. When the keeper himself falls ill, his wife cares for him, and for all the lighthouse duties as well. Eventually, the tender - a ship which supplies the lighthouse with everything it needs - comes to take them away. They are being replaced by a show more machine, which will keep the light running...

Informative and engaging, Hello Lighthouse manages to be matter-of-factly interesting, with all the daily lighthouse-keeper duties it depicts, while also capturing the feeling of mystery and the sense of beauty that these massive structures evoke. There's something symbolic about a lighthouse, casting its light out into the darkness, offering a warning to passing strangers, representing the human hope for safety in the profoundly unsafe (and alien) realm of the sea. Somehow, Blackall manages to capture that sense of a lighthouse as standing in a liminal space, caught between land and sea, midway between reality and fantasy. The coming of mechanization may have ended the daily human caring for lighthouses, but it seems to have done nothing, to judge by the many people who travel the country and world to look at them, to reduce the human fascination with these vital structures. This is a gorgeous book, one whose artwork is every bit as beautiful as in Blackall's Caldecott-winning Finding Winnie, and which has a poetic cadence to the text that is well-suited to the visuals. Highly, highly recommended, to all fellow Blackall fans, and to anyone who loves lighthouses, and is looking for a picture-book about them. For my part, this might be my first pick, of 2018, for a mock-Caldecott! show less

Hello Lighthouse is both a tribute and a triumph! Sophie Blackwell makes a bold choice by choosing the lighthouse to be our protagonist as we explore the life of one lighthouse and the tenure of its final keeper. As seasons shift and change, the lighthouse beams it's glowing message out to the sea as the keeper tends to his duties, both night and day.

" He tends the light and writes in the logbook..." even recording such momentous events as rescuing shipwrecked sailors from a raging sea and the birth of his first child. The lighthouse and the keeper are bound, even when he is rendered obsolete.

I read this book several times, running my fingers across the beautiful pages, somewhere between land and sea - reality and fantasy. At some show more point, I began reading this book solely for pleasure.
Over the waves, across the bay, my own light beamed back.
Hello!
...Hello!
...Hello!
Hello, Lighthouse! show less

As a kid I was always fascinated by lighthouses: what could it possibly be like to live inside one? The award-winning author/illustrator Sophie Blackall was curious about this also. But unlike me, she researched, visited lighthouse museums, and climbed the towers of lighthouses all over the northeast coast. She explains in an author’s note that:

“The lighthouse in this book is based on one I stayed in on a tiny island at the northern tip of Newfoundland. But as Herman Melville writes in Moby Dick, ‘it is not down in any map; true places never are.’”

The book shows what it would be like for a typical family to live inside a lighthouse, beginning when a fictional new keeper arrives to replace the old, “to carry on tending the show more light.” She explains what the keeper does all day, from polishing the lens, refilling the oil, winding the clockwork to keep the lamp in motion, and writing in his logbook. But often, there is not much to do. Eventually a wife arrives to live with him, and before long, they are three.

And all the while, when the sky grows dark, the waves rise and crash, and the keeper sends out a signal: “HELLO! . . . HELLO! . . . HELLO!”

One day however, the coast guard comes with a new light that can be operated by a machine. The days of lighthouse keepers are over.

Blackall, a Caldecott Award medalist, produces beautiful artwork in Chinese ink and watercolor of people both at rest and in motion, whimsically depicted to reflect their circular living situation.

Sometimes the scenes are shown as if the reader is looking through a porthole, changing up the view for alert readers. Blackall is skilled not only with drawing people; the sea changes from panel to panel, depending on whether it is stormy or calm or reflecting a fiery sunset.

At the back of the book there is a two-page spread providing information about lighthouses.

Evaluation: This lovely picture book is geared to readers from preschool to grade 3. show less

Primary/Intermediate. Hello Lighthouse is about a lighthouse keeper who tends to the light. He is lonely, and then his wife joins, and soon they have a child who they raise in the lighthouse until they have to move across the water to a house.
I loved this book's story and illustrations; it was very heartwarming. This book would be a great addition to my library to be an amazing example of wonderful illustrations, as it is a Caldecott winner.

I’ve loved lighthouses since I was a girl, and I know I would have pored over this book many times during preschool and early elementary grade ages. I enjoyed viewing the lighthouse rooms and their contents. Entrancing and enchanting. As a child the pictures could have kept me captivated for long periods of time.

The illustrations definitely make the book. They’re gorgeous. Mesmerizing. The illustrations of the lighthouse and especially the natural beauty of the sea, sky, rocks are spectacular. I wasn’t 100% a fan of the depictions of people but I liked them well enough.

The repetitive lines story was rather sad, and more than a bit gloomy at times, though it’s also sweet and has an ending that while not idyllic is pleasant and show more happy enough. Some might also love the story but this could have worked fine for me as a wordless or nearly wordless picture book. For young children I can see how the words might be lulling and entertaining.

The final two text pages about lighthouses and their keepers for older children/readers were interesting and were for me a welcome part of the book.

This is a lovely book and can be enjoyed by independent readers, reading aloud for families, schools, libraries, etc.

I’d had this on my list and when I found out it won the Caldecott Medal I made a point of getting to it. I think the honor is well deserved. show less

Destined to be a Caldecott Medal finalist again, Sophie Blackall’s art is absolutely stunning in this book. The illustrations are both detailed and patterned. Roaring waves leap off the page and put you right there in the story.

Blackall’s text allows you to dive in and live and breathe the life of a lighthouse and its keeper. You have a front seat to feel the wonder, awe and danger that unfold as you learn the all important role and tremendous responsibility of a keeper. The book is informative and moving and the ending includes a twist I didn’t see coming.

Favorite Line: “On the highest rock of a tiny island at the edge of the world stands a lighthouse.”

Confession time: I read this book a while ago and did not like it. I think that's because I was reading it from a storytime planning perspective and not for reading's sake. But this time....oh how I see the beauty in it.

It's the story of a lighthouse keeper who is there to refill the oil, trim the wicks--do a lightkeeper's business. The story progresses with his wife joining him and then the two of them doing it together. There is a shipwreck, a child birth, all sorts of adventures. The nuances are amazing. Notice the book as seasons change! Of course, the end is a bit bittersweet--the lighthouse keeper's job is done (but no, he doesn't die)

Sophie Blackall is an amazing illustrator. She has illustrated two of my favorite books: show more "Finding Winnie" and "A Fine Dessert." I see this book as being somewhere in the Caldecott buzz this month! And I do love this book now--just read it one and one. It's far more enjoyable. show less