The Line

K-Gr 2—Illustrations in three colors-red, black, and blue-tell this wordless story, done in a style reminiscent of Crockett Johnson's Harold and the Purple Crayon. In this tale, a young girl finds that she can pick up a stringlike line and twist and shape it in all directions. First, she throws it out in front of her and creates giant loops to slide on. Next, the line becomes a hoop to spin upside down in. She can blow on it to form a bubble, or twist it into the shape of a monkey. She creates an audience to watch her juggling act. But, soon her audience morphs into a monster wanting to eat her. Behind her, however, a bear emerges upward from the line to scare the monster away. As it so happens, it is a friendly bear, drawn by a previously unseen boy who is the original line-drawing artist. Giggling, he exits the scene on the last page. The illustrations are drawn in a childlike manner using only pencil. This simple, but charming fantasy is well suited for most picture-book collections.—Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA