  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 04/01/2011 K-Gr 2—Contentment is a happy, perfect square with "four matching corners and four equal sides." It literally smiles at readers. Even when punched, torn, shredded, shattered, snipped, crumpled, ripped, and wrinkled, it finds a new shape and purpose. A rainbow of boldly colored pages separates each image (or transformation) of the square as each day of the week presents a new challenge and expands its world. Feeling surrounded again and trapped by four corners, the square quickly finds a solution and looks out on the world through a self-made window. The art is simple; minimal manipulation of the square into six new incarnations of brightly colored acrylic ink prints presents shape, color, and time in the context of a story. The message is also basic—a positive attitude toward change may lead to success (and even joy). Hall has endowed a geometric figure with personality—independent and artistic. As its week progresses, the narrative turn of events in the square's world encourages page-turning to discover the results. What will the square do next? This is a not-to-be-missed adventure for all young readers.—Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano ISD, TX - Copyright 2011 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 04/15/2011 *Starred Review* Hall, a graphic designer who made his picture-book debut with My Heart Is like a Zoo (2010), takes a simple square, changes its form in tangramlike ways, and creates a picture book that is handsome, bold, and (best of all) playful. Starting out as a happy red square on Monday, it is cut into strips and punched full of holes. The next spread shows the bits and pieces repositioned, forming an impressive, multitiered fountain. Torn into scraps on Tuesday, the square (now yellow and orange) becomes a garden of flowers. On the following days, the square is “shredded,” “shattered,” “snipped,” and “crumpled and ripped and wrinkled,” but each time, it is transformed into something new and beautiful. On Sunday, nothing happens, so the square makes itself “into a window” and looks out on the creations of the previous six days. Just as the crooked smile on the jacket changes the sophisticated design into something more human and inviting, so a few simple lines added to the pictures help change the scraps of paper into convincing new scenes. Bold colors and building anticipation make moments of drama out of the page turns. Memorable for reading aloud and terrific for inspiring creative play with the simplest materials. - Copyright 2011 Booklist. Loading...
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