{"id":34162,"date":"2018-01-16T23:29:16","date_gmt":"2018-01-17T03:29:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=34162"},"modified":"2018-01-16T23:29:16","modified_gmt":"2018-01-17T03:29:16","slug":"review-of-the-pink-umbrella-by-amelie-callot-pictures-by-genevieve-godbout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=34162","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Pink Umbrella, by Am\u00e9lie Callot, pictures by Genevi\u00e8ve Godbout"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The Pink Umbrella<\/em><\/p>\n

by Am\u00e9lie Callot
\npictures by Genevi\u00e8ve Godbout<\/p>\n

Tundra Books, Penguin Random House, 2018. Originally published in French in 2016 in Canada. 76 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

Ah! A wonderful 2018 children\u2019s book for which I can post a review! Why? Because it\u2019s translated from French and was originally published in Canada in 2016 \u2013 so it\u2019s not eligible for the 2019 Newbery. I probably wouldn\u2019t have read it, but it\u2019s a picture book. I\u2019m glad I did because I was enchanted.<\/p>\n

The Pink Umbrella<\/em> is the story of Adele, who runs a caf\u00e9 called The Polka-Dot Apron in a small village next to the sea.<\/p>\n

For the villagers, the caf\u00e9 is a refuge,
\na small lantern always lit.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s where everyone meets. Where they cry, laugh, yell, argue and love. The caf\u00e9 is the heart of the village.<\/p>\n

And Adele is the heart of the caf\u00e9. She is the village\u2019s sun \u2013 lively, sweet and sparkling.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Adele is known for gathering people together. And her friend Lucas helps by supplying the caf\u00e9. But there\u2019s something else Adele is known for:<\/p>\n

The thing everyone knows about Adele is that she doesn\u2019t like the rain.<\/p>\n

When the weather is nice, she smiles, she whistles, she sings at the top of her lungs, she throws open the windows and props open the door\u2026.<\/p>\n

But when it rains, Adele stays inside.
\nShe can\u2019t help it; she loses her spirit.
\nThe rain is gray, cold and dreary.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

However, one beautiful market day on Wednesday (the caf\u00e9 has many uses besides being a caf\u00e9 and Wednesday is market day), someone leaves behind two bright pink rubber boots with suns carved into the soles. They are just Adele\u2019s size! She asks all week, but no one claims them.<\/p>\n

The next week, someone leaves behind a bright pink raincoat. It, too, fits Adele perfectly.<\/p>\n

But the next market day the weather is bad. Lucas and Adele are taking care of the market stall, but few customers come, so Lucas leaves early.<\/p>\n

When the truck disappeared from view, Adele turned around to close the caf\u00e9, roll herself up in her quilt and wait for the sun to take the place of the clouds . . .<\/p>\n

But she stopped short, stunned! In the entrance, under the coatrack, was an adorable umbrella.
\nIt was pink . . . with polka dots!<\/p>\n

And only one person could have left it there.<\/p>\n

Adele smiled.<\/p>\n

Because the day was done, because she wanted to, and because opening an umbrella inside is bad luck . . . Adele put on the boots and the raincoat and, on the doorstep, opened the pink polka-dotted umbrella.<\/p>\n

There was only one step to take, and she took it with joy. She turned the key in the lock and went for a walk in the rain.<\/p>\n

It really wasn\u2019t so bad. The air smelled wonderfully of damp grass, and the rain played a pretty melody as it fell on the umbrella.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And yes, she sees her friend Lucas as she goes on her walk.<\/p>\n

I probably shouldn\u2019t have quoted as much from this book as I did, lest you think that\u2019s all there is to it. I wanted to convey the charming language used. But the marvelous old-fashioned pictures are what completely win your heart. They are large and beautiful, cartoon-like but filled with atmosphere. Adele is beautiful and like a ray of sunshine indeed \u2013 but all the more so when she\u2019s all dressed in pink, brightening up a gray day.<\/p>\n

At first, I liked the book so much, I thought it was really written more for adults than for children. But then I thought about how very much fun it would be to read the book to my four- and five-year-old nieces. It\u2019s a book about joy, and a book about love, and a book about getting out in the rain, and a book about the joys of wearing pink!<\/p>\n

If I were doing a preschool storytime in February, I would enjoy using this book for a book with a theme of love where it\u2019s not overtly stated. Yes, it\u2019s on the long side \u2013 but even though there are many pages, most don\u2019t have a lot of words, and the big beautiful pictures will keep their interest. But of course, more fun would be sitting down with a child who loves pink, or a child who loves wearing rubber boots in the rain \u2013 and reading it together.<\/p>\n

penguinrandomhouse.ca<\/a><\/p>\n

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

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Picture_Books\/pink_umbrella.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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