The Lost Thing

Astonishing and heartwarming low-key story of a boy who discovers something lost and finds it a home. What makes this so special is that every page is painted onto a collage of old textbook pages and Tan's vision is of a surreal tawdry dystopia that contains no real threat. The lost thing is a sentient mechanical organism and although it is unique there are other such creatures in the child's world. The painted pages are filled with rich imagery but nothing seems crowded and the cumulative effect is a melancholic love.

Beautiful simply beautiful. A man who loves to collect bottle tops notices a big red teapot shaped thing at the beach and befriends it. It then tries to figure out what to do with it since it's lost. Wonderful story and stunning graphics.

Like the illustrations, which are composed of drawings layered on old mathematical and scientific text and diagrams, Shaun Tan has again produced a book that needs multiple readings to uncover all its layers.

Superficially, this is the story of a boy who collects bottle caps quite industriously, and finds in the midst of a beach full of oblivious people, a strange contraption, metal and octopus-limbed, alive and alone. The two go off to find the strange beast's place in the world, among other out-of-place things, none of which "really belonged. They all seemed happy enough though, so maybe that didn't matter. I don't know..."

The device appears in Tan's new "Lost and Found" as well. Off to get a copy...

Shaun Tan is unparalleled in creating whole worlds inside his graphic picture books. This is another marvelous story about a unique creature found by a boy. Perfect artwork and emotional alchemy.

Brazil meets Dr. Seuss in this amazing graphic novel. Tan's fantastical creatures and simple stories combine to create such a thought provoking book in a slim volume. Each page is so full of interesting detail and objects; I studied each one carefully so I wouldn't miss anything - and when I go back to look again, I'm sure I'll find much more. Highly recommend.

Beautiful art, and an interesting story. A boy finds a mysterious thing on the beach, and eventually brings it home, and has to decide what to do with it. The interplay of the text and the pictures is lovely - I love the moment when the boy mentions finding out what the thing likes to eat - and in the picture he's feeding it Christmas decorations. And the beach looks like a rusted hyperindustrial version of a spot along the Bondi to Bronte walk!

I really dig Tan's illustrations. His prose in this fell just a bit flat for me, but it hardly matters as there is just so much to look at. Odd and quirky beings peer out of every corner. This would be delightful to read with a young, sharp-eyed person on one's lap.