One Red Shoe

Gr 3 Up—In her debut picture book, Gruss transports readers to a war zone and into the life of a newspaper photographer as he hears gunshots and explosions and rushes to the devastating scene of the aftermath of an attack on a school bus. As paramedics treat injured children with IV drips and bandages, the photographer focuses on one victim being rushed to the operating room after being struck by a grenade to his right leg and sustaining a shrapnel wound to the head. "…a boy in jeans and T-shirt lay on a gurney in front of me. He wore a red basketball shoe on his left foot. I had given a pair of the same shoes to my nephew for his eighth birthday. I turned my camera on." The book successfully brings the reality of the conflict home in a way that a news report will never be able to do. The story was inspired by real events in the Middle East, but it touches a nerve that makes the conflict personal. As the photographer faces the young boy's struggle for life, his perspective changes. He imagines the child playing basketball as he must have done before the bombing. He realizes just how far he is from the comfort and safety of his life back home and how lucky his nephew is not to live in a place plagued by violence and war. The narrative is written in the concise style of a newspaper report. Not a word is wasted. The striking monochromatic illustrations extend the story and heighten its emotional impact. The angles, shading, and perspectives of the images serve to highlight the idea of viewing this story through the lens of the photographer's camera. The red sneaker is the one striking splash of color, and it successfully focuses attention on the emotional center of the story.