Collection
Description
In this wordless graphic novel, a young girl traveling from her city apartment to her grandmother's country home becomes lost and enters a fantastical world in the clouds.
Publication
Schwartz & Wade (2015), 112 pages
User reviews
LibraryThing member Salsabrarian
Kids have a powerful sense of abandonment and loneliness. They will empathize with the little girl as she ventures out alone on a journey to her grandmother's in the care of a gentle but powerful stag. The depictions of the girl's forlorn expressions, comforting hugs, and the joys of friendship
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resonate in the heart, maybe causing a little bit of tears. Show Less
LibraryThing member Tracie_Shepherd
This is a unique and stunning wordless picture book. While young readers would enjoy the beautiful pictures I think middle to older readers would better understand the story the pictures are telling. The illustrations exhibit great emotion - both sad and happy - in telling the story of a young
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Chinese child living in the time of the one child policy in China. This could be use as an effective story in explaining this policy in middle and high school. Show Less
LibraryThing member kquisling
As an only child, the young main character grapples with loneliness. A stag appears to save her from her endless solitude and leads her to an imaginary world that is not saturated with loneliness as her own is. This graphic novel is rich with emotion. Images are in many ways more useful than words
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in describing the complexity of feelings of an only child. The Only Child also enlightens the reader about personal impact of the one-child policy in China. Show Less
LibraryThing member AbigailAdams26
Left on her own one day when her mother and father must go to work, the titular 'only child' in this gorgeous wordless picture-book sets out to visit her grandmother, only to fall asleep on the bus-ride there. Waking up far too late, the girl disembarks and soon finds herself lost in the woods.
An astonishingly beautiful book, The Only Child was apparently inspired by an episode in artist Guojing's own lonely childhood in China, in which she got lost on her way to her grandmother's house. In the book, this results in a magical experience, one in which loneliness is relieved and solitude broken by means of a journey connecting heaven and earth. The stag is such an enchanting figure here, so wise and loving, and although there are no words, the bond of love and affection that the little girl forms with him is deftly communicated by the artwork. I was reminded of the ancient elk who acts as a guide to the children in Pat O'Shea's marvelous Irish fantasy, The Hounds of the Morrigan, and that is high praise indeed! This is the sort of book that rewards each rereading, revealing little details of image and meaning upon each perusal. Recommended to anyone who appreciate beautifully illustrated picture-books, and to those looking for children's stories featuring enchanted journeys and our connection to the fantastic.
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When a beautiful stag approaches, she finds a friend and a guide, one who takes her on a fantastic voyage to a far-removed land in the clouds. Here she meets another friend, and together the three pass an extraordinary time, resting on fluffy clouds, being swallowed and disgorged by a massive cloud whale, and sitting contentedly together. When the little cloud creature is reunited with his mother, our human heroine is returned by her stag guardian to her own parents, but she takes something of her friend with her...An astonishingly beautiful book, The Only Child was apparently inspired by an episode in artist Guojing's own lonely childhood in China, in which she got lost on her way to her grandmother's house. In the book, this results in a magical experience, one in which loneliness is relieved and solitude broken by means of a journey connecting heaven and earth. The stag is such an enchanting figure here, so wise and loving, and although there are no words, the bond of love and affection that the little girl forms with him is deftly communicated by the artwork. I was reminded of the ancient elk who acts as a guide to the children in Pat O'Shea's marvelous Irish fantasy, The Hounds of the Morrigan, and that is high praise indeed! This is the sort of book that rewards each rereading, revealing little details of image and meaning upon each perusal. Recommended to anyone who appreciate beautifully illustrated picture-books, and to those looking for children's stories featuring enchanted journeys and our connection to the fantastic.
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LibraryThing member SonyaHSH
This wordless novel is a pure treasure. Each picture is so beautifully illustrated with what looks like the simple strokes of a pencil. Each image conveys a different feeling and emotion. Shows children that words are not always necessary to express feelings. I would recommend this story!
LibraryThing member jennybeast
Sad? Melancholy? But the images are magical and the stag is as lovely a thing as could be.
Awards
Notable Children's Book (2016)
Language
Original language
Chinese
Physical description
112 p.; 8.44 inches
ISBN
0553497049 / 9780553497045