Gr 8 Up—In this picture book originally published in Switzerland, mesmerizing illustrations create a beautiful world of swirling stars and planets. The illustrations contrast starkly with the text, which is shockingly bleak: an anti-fairy tale in which everyone is dead except for a child. Tethered to a ball of yarn, he travels to the moon, sun, and stars, searching for something better and is always disappointed. The moon is "a piece of rotten wood," the sun is "a faded sunflower," and the stars are mosquitoes caught in spiderwebs. The child returns to Earth all alone, crying. "And if he has not yet died/then he sits there still/and is all/alone." Bhend's artwork plays counterpoint to the text, challenging the bleak worldview with its intricate beauty and brave, hopeful hero. While the last line says the boy is "all alone," a final page turn reveals him back in his room, tearful but smiling as his family peeks through the doors. Perhaps it was a dream, or a crying fit? Interpretation is left to readers, but hope remains. This book would work well for older students studying the interplay of text and illustration, or as an introduction to German literature (the story is adapted from Woyzeck, a play by 19th-century dramatist Georg Büchner).—Suzanne Myers Harold, Multnomah County Library System, Portland, OR
In this picture book for older readers, an orphan is left alone on Earth. He explores the heavens and discovers that the sun, moon, and stars are devastating illusions and sources of even more loneliness. The story, adapted from a play by Georg Büchner, is dark, morbid, and frightening--just right for middle schoolers. The illustrations evoke a fairy-tale feeling and leave room for imagination.
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