{"id":28744,"date":"2016-07-07T23:42:28","date_gmt":"2016-07-08T03:42:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=28744"},"modified":"2016-07-07T23:42:28","modified_gmt":"2016-07-08T03:42:28","slug":"review-of-the-whisper-by-pamela-zagarenski","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=28744","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Whisper, by Pamela Zagarenski"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"whisper_large\"<\/a>The Whisper<\/em><\/p>\n

by Pamela Zagarenski<\/p>\n

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, 2015. 36 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

<\/em>The Whisper<\/em> is a mystical, highly symbolic picture book about imagination.<\/p>\n

The main story is that a girl is given a book by her teacher. But when she gets home and opens the book, there are no words inside, only pictures.<\/p>\n

As the little girl paged through the wordless book, she heard the wind blow and then a small whisper:<\/p>\n

\u201cDear little girl, don\u2019t be disappointed.
\nYou can imagine the words.
\nYou can imagine the stories.
\nStart with a few simple words and imagine from there.
\nRemember: beginnings, middles, and ends of stories can always be changed and imagined differently.
\nThere are never any rules, rights, or wrongs in imagining \u2013 imagining just is.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The whisper sounded so knowing and wise to the little girl that she opened the book to the first page and began.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From there, we see each lavishly painted page and hear the beginning of the story the little girl tells about each one.<\/p>\n

There are definitely recurring themes in the paintings (In fact, themes that tie in with Pamela Zagarenski\u2019s other books) which also tie in with the stuffed animals in the girl\u2019s room, and the fox who followed her home.<\/p>\n

And that all sounds a lot simpler than this book really is. There are layers upon layers. After a few readings, I\u2019m still not at all sure I\u2019ve grasped everything that\u2019s going on.<\/p>\n

You could also use this book as a simple Seek-and-Find book with the various recurring elements happening on each page.<\/p>\n

But the overarching idea is this: You can make stories yourself.<\/p>\n

And you will be glad you did.<\/p>\n

Oh, and my favorite painting is the one of the wizard who blows bubbles in the shapes of things and fills the harbor with enormous white whales.<\/p>\n

Imaginative!<\/p>\n

sacredbee.com<\/a>
\nhmhco.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Picture_Books\/whisper.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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