By employing landscapes in lieu of human or animal characters, Osada and Arai ask readers to look--really look--at the rain, the way the changing weather transforms the visible spectrum, and the magnificence of the night sky, phenomena all too often unseen in a hurry-up world. The result is a story that sharpens the senses and quiets the soul. -STARRED REVIEW, Publishers Weekly
Gentle and lyrical, Every Color of Light is a bedtime story told by the elements.
Every Color of Light opens on a lush, green forest in the rain. Illustrated by the masterful Ryoji Arai, the calm is shattered when the wind picks up and lightning cuts the sky. Yet out of this turbulence, the day blooms bright, the flowers open, and raindrops roll and drip down to the forest floor. The sun sets. The moon rises, and in a pool of water we see its reflection. We go to sleep with the forest, sinking into the pool, into the calm reflection of the moon. Harmonizing our human experience to the natural world, Arai invites the reader to hold imaginative space for our oneness with the natural world.
Author: Hiroshi Osada
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Published: 10/13/2020
Pages: 38
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.95lbs
Size: 11.00h x 8.30w x 0.40d
ISBN: 9781592702916
Audience: Ages 4-8
Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 05/04/2020
Horn Book Magazine 09/01/2020 pg. 69
Kirkus Reviews 09/15/2020
Booklist 10/15/2020 pg. 57
Shelf Awareness 11/24/2020
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2020 - Superior,Well Above Average
About the Author
Ryôji Arai was born in Yamagata, Japan, in 1956. He has an illustrative style all of his own: bold, mischievous and unpredictable. Arai studied art at Nippon University. His art is at once genuine and truly poetic, encouraging children to paint and to tell their own stories. He took the Japanese picture-book world by storm in the 1990s. Since then, he has one multiple awards, including the international Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in 2005.
David Boyd is Assistant Professor of Japanese at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. His translations have appeared in Monkey Business International, Granta, and Words Without Borders, among other publications.