FICTION

There's a Little Black Spot on the Sun Today

by Sting
illus. by Sven Völker. 40p. NorthSouth. 2015. Tr $19.95. ISBN 9780735842380.
COPY ISBN
Gr 3 Up—Paper cut-outs illustrate the lyrics of the well-known song "The King of Pain," written by the musician Sting and recorded by his band, The Police. A prologue explains that the illustrator and his son, Malo, would often listen to the song as the son was fighting a painful illness. The lyrics captured the essence of Malo's pain—the loneliness of a hat caught in a treetop, the fear of a butterfly captured in a spider's web, and the finality of a broken-backed gull. The artwork abstractly and strikingly conveys emotion through color and geometric repetition. While its intent may be to instill empathy, some of the imagery may need the guidance and assurance of an adult to provide clarity to what some younger children may find upsetting.
VERDICT A unique and thoughtful interpretation that is sure to spark discussion.
Reviewed by Carol Connor, Cincinnati Public Schools, OH
"There's a red fox / torn by a huntsman's pack. / There's a black winged gull / with a broken back." Smartly laid-out geometric shapes illustrate the lyrics to the Police song "King of Pain." The reader would be lost without Völker's prologue explaining this challenging book's origin: the song helped his son when the boy was undergoing painful medical treatments.
 , Dec 01, 2015

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