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On the Other Side of the Garden

On her first night at her grandmother’s house, Isabel is lonely and uncertain. She doesn’t know her grandmother and she doesn’t know how long her father will be gone. Then an owl, a frog and a mouse appear at the window and lead her outside. The owl, a gentle caretaker, the frog, forthright and full of questions, and the mouse shy and hoping for a snack, tell her about her grandmother, who is kind, and perhaps a little lonely, too. She tells them about her mother, who lives in another country and writes her letters, and her dad, who is looking for work. The dark night eventually becomes a bright morning, and waiting for Isabel is her grandmother, offering matter-of-fact reassurance. The warm colors and rounded shapes of the three animals against dark-sky pages, the small moments of humor throughout the striking digital illustrations reminiscent of pen-and-ink, and the brightening palette mirroring Latina Isabel’s shifting outlook all contribute to the sense of comfort this picture book provides, however children choose to make sense of the events taking place: magical realism, dream, or imaginative flight of fancy. ©2019 Cooperative Children’s Book Center

Illustrated by Rafael Yockteng
Translated by Elisa Amado. Translated from the Spanish.

CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 4-7
Age Range: PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7)
Format: Picture book
Subjects: Animals (Fiction) Anxiety Families Magical Realism Separation
Diversity subject: Latine

Publishers: Groundwood, House of Anansi
Publish Year: 2018
Pages: 56
ISBN: 9781554989836

CCBC Location: Picture Book, Buitrago

On the Other Side of the Garden