The Heart and the Bottle

by Oliver Jeffers

Hardcover, 2010

Status

Available

Collection

Picture books

Publication

Philomel Books (2010), Edition: 1st Edition, 32 pages

Description

After safeguarding her heart in a bottle hung around her neck, a girl finds the bottle growing heavier and her interest in things around her becoming smaller.

User reviews

LibraryThing member lnpowers

I really enjoyed the theme of this story about putting your heart into a bottle and not knowing how to get it back. I think it would be good for children who have experienced a loss.

This book uses mixed media to illustrate the story. This could be an inspiration for older children to make their own

mixed media illustrations.

Show Less

15 more

LibraryThing member CloverHillReviews

The cover on this is really bright and the bottle illustration is glossier than the rest of the cover, giving the bottle a real sense of glass.

The story is about a girl who experiences loss of a loved one. She takes her heart and places it in a bottle so it can't be harmed again. I wince as I write

this. This was a hard concept for both me and the older reviewer, Shaun, to accept. I get that the author is trying to show the pain bereavement causes, it's just that in this instance I feel it's not done in an open way. A chair is empty and signifies the loss, but we don't know the person...and it just felt odd and incomplete to me. It does show how we can detach from ourselves and get on with life, even though things have changed, and eventually we accept and move on. Looking back on loss for a child is different than looking back as an adult though, so our youngest reviewer didn't mind this part of the book, and accepted the book as it was without further explanation needed, which surprised me.

The Heart and the Bottle is bright, and colourful in many ways, something which may not ordinarily go hand in hand with loss, but this book does. All the illustrations are beautiful, and the wonderment and curiosity shown by the girl is lovely and heart touching.

Show Less

LibraryThing member SarahLinfield

Great book, it talks about love and how it was lost through death. To make her not feel sad anymore she decides to put her heart into a bottle around her neck. She lives life this way, she can not love anything, until she meets a girl just like she used to be full of wonder and curiosity. This

allows her to open herself up to love again. I love this book, great for adults and kids can relate.

Show Less

LibraryThing member LoniMc

A wonderful book about someone who wanted to protect themselve only to realise that they were missing out on much of life.

LibraryThing member dukefan86

It took a second read for me to "get it," but I loved the chance to see the really nice illustrations again. Nice story!

LibraryThing member pjhugs

I was browsing the anatomy section while my friend went off to browse the children's section. She came up to me and told me to read this. She warned it got a little depressing. I shocked the hell out of both of us when I started crying right there in the middle of the bookstore. When I finished

reading it, all I said was, "Get your own copy". I read it again when I got home and it still made me cry.

Show Less

LibraryThing member lcaitday

A child grieves her dead grandfather in this heartbreaking, simple picture book written and drawn by Oliver Jeffers. The nameless girl spends the first few pages exploring the “curiosities of the world” with her grandfather. But one day the chair he sits in is empty. After his death the girl

puts her heart in a bottle and wanders through life numb, until she is older and finds a new curious little girl who inspires her to put her heart back where it belongs. The book has a darker tone with very simple text that strives on implications and rather than spelling things out for the reader. The illustrations are simple and consist of darker hues to match the tone, except when referring to the character’s curiosity, showing thought bubbles full of detailed drawings of everything from a set of lungs to the solar system. Aside from the obvious theme of handling grief, the author puts a heavy emphasis on learning and being creative at all ages. It is definitely meant as a read aloud between an adult and child to discuss the theme of grief, and would not be appropriate for large groups or new solo readers. Additional Selection.

Show Less

LibraryThing member awhite43

I thought "The Heart and The Bottle" written and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers was an excellent book.I like that Jeffers uses mixed media to create his illustrations which emphasize both the joy and sadness which are described in the story. I thought this is one of my favorite books because of it's

subject, dealing with the loss of a loved one even though it's never explicitly stated in the story. I liked that the young girl is an adult and needs the help of what we assume might be her daughter to help her remove her heart from the bottle. I really enjoyed the text-less illustration of the girl drawing a pic that we assume is for her father, and the accompanying pages where the girl realizes that her father is gone. I thought the way that Jeffers describes how the young girl no longer enjoys all the things the girl once enjoyed doing now that her heart is in a bottle, were a great symbolization for the grief and depression that is felt after losing someone that you love. The theme of this book is coping with loss and the importance of working to overcome that grief.

Show Less

LibraryThing member nkwak1

I really enjoyed this book. I knew Oliver Jeffers from his previous books. I recognized his illustrations right away and knew that I wanted to take a look inside of the book. In my opinion, this is a good book for children to read at all ages. This book is filled with hope of imagination and

curiosities. One aspect that I appreciated was the way that the author wrote the book. The writing itself is well-paced and clear. I liked how he introduced the two characters in the beginning, subtly adding in the older man accompanying her. Although there aren't many words, the author was able to create a relationship between the characters in the book. The few words that are used portray just enough information for the reader to get a gist of the atmosphere while also coming to their own conclusions. The other aspect that I loved was the illustrations. Oliver Jeffers is extremely talented in drawing the pictures to portray the short encounters with each page. Each illustration adds to the text and fits the book in itself. He was able to change the entire mood of the book with only two pages. When the little girls older companion leaves nothing but an empty chair, she sits in front of the chair, staring. Readers could only imagine what happened to him, whether he died or left the family. In this aspect, children may be able to directly relate it to their own lives and struggles. I also enjoyed how Jeffers didn't necessarily specify the exact relation that the little girl had to the older man. Readers can interpret him as they please. He could be an uncle, grandfather, father, etc. No matter who he is, children may be able to relate to the feeling of losing someone close and not wanting to talk about it or "bottling" it up. I believe that the overall message or big idea of this book is geared towards children and that when they lose someone, sometimes things may seem unbearable or heavy but if you open your heart then those wounds can heal with the help of those who care for you.

Show Less

LibraryThing member kkadal1

I enjoyed "The Heart and the Bottle", the central message of which was that there is always hope, no matter how dire a situation might be. I liked the book for its well-developed characters. The little girl in the story was one to whom I could relate, as she experienced love and loss in a sometimes

big and scary world that is not always sensitive to our feelings. I also liked the story for its charming illustrations, which I felt were appropriate to the mood of the story. The illustration that speaks the most to me was the one on the cover of the book, which shows the main character standing next to a glass bottle that holds her heart. I felt that the illustrations enhanced the story by accurately depicting the raw emotion the little girl experienced as the plot progressed. Finally, I liked this book for its ability to push readers to think about difficult issues, such as grief and loss. The story of the little girl going from living life with an open heart, to closing off her heart and placing it in a bottle, then eventually living with her heart inside of her once more encourages readers to think about how to deal with an issue such as the loss of a loved one. I feel as though this book would be a great one for children to read during a time that they are learning how to handle big emotions. The little girl's story is surely one to which many young children can relate on an emotional level.

Show Less

LibraryThing member Mchapp1

The story “The Heart and the Bottle” by Oliver Jeffers is a wonderful story filled with descriptive language, vivid images, and an abundance of symbolism. Throughout the story Jeffers describes the emotional journey of a young girl who looses her passion for discovery with the loss of a loved

one. Struggling to cope with her loss Jeffers describes how “the girl thought the best thing to do was to put her heart in a safe place for the time being. So she put it in a bottle and hung it around her neck”. Jeffers also describes how she forgot about everything she loved “ she forgot about the stars, and stopped taking notice of the sea”, and how heavy the heart in the bottle around her neck felt. The vivid images allows the reader to follow the storyline, as well as get a sense of the sadness the main character felt. This helps the reader feel as if they are part of the story and watching the character evolve. The story is filled with symbolism especially with regards to the heart in the bottle which symbolizes trying to detach from feelings after loss. This story pushes readers to think about loss and grief and how it is important to let life’s experience fuel one’s passions not deter them from it. The overall meaning of this story is although one might feel things that hurt, nothing hurts more than losing yourself and your ability to see the beauty in life.

Show Less

LibraryThing member DanielleMD

Heartbreaking and uplifting.

LibraryThing member troberts719

A little girl has a life filled with wonder and adventure. One day, something happens that causes the girl to put her heart in a safe bottle. After that, things seemed more empty. An encounter with another little girl helps her to get her heart back and the world is full again.

LibraryThing member Lisa2013

This is the best picture book about complicated grief I’ve ever read, and one of the best books about it on the subject, period. It’s lovely in every way. It would make a wonderful present for children who’ve lost a loved one, or someone of any age who’s suffered a loss, both recently and

long ago. It’s also a great bibliotherapy book for children who are grieving.

I came close to crying, but this overall this is an uplifting book that also made me smile.

There is a perfect amount of text and of pictures.

I appreciated how the paper pages are thicker than in most books and sturdy, but this is not a board book.

I got a kick out of how the heart was drawn to more resemble a real human heart than a typical heart symbol. And then on the inside last page I loved how some parts of the cardiovascular system are shown and listed.

Lovely illustrations. They’re colorful and sweet and interesting and many are very intricate, except for the also sweet, meaningful, simple drawings on the inside front cover.

Nice touch to have a photo of the author-illustrator as a young boy in the author bio section on the inside back cover of the book. I love it when authors of children’s books do this!

This is a very smart and a very touching book.

Highly recommended for child therapists, children, parents, and anyone who’s recently or long ago suffered the still painful loss of a loved one or knows someone who has.

Show Less

LibraryThing member AbigailAdams26

Celebrated (and prolific!) author/artist Oliver Jeffers explores the nature of grief in this poignant picture-book, following the story of a young girl who is filled with wonder at the world, and who shares that wonder with a beloved elder. When that elder - a father, perhaps a grandfather? -

disappears from her life, the girl shuts her heart in a bottle, in order to protect it from the griefs of life. But without her heart, she finds that she has become blind to the beauty and wonder she once saw all around her. It takes another little wonder-filled girl, whom she encounters when she herself is a little older, to help her begin to free her heart from its self-imposed exile...

A simple but emotionally resonant text, one which captures the grieving process perfectly, is paired with beautiful artwork in The Heart and the Bottle, creating an understated but powerful picture-book experience. I particularly appreciated the message, implicit in the story, that in order to experience joy and wonder, we must also endure pain and sorrow, something the girl eventually learns through her own experiences. Jeffers has a perceptive eye for the human condition here, and I found the idea, also highlighted in the story, that we can get so out of the habit of opening our hearts, that we forget how to do so, quite powerful. The illustrations are lovely, whether they communicate the desolation the girl feels, when confronting loss (as represented by an empty chair), or the joy she experiences, when the world opens up to her again (as depicted by the rainbow-colored smorgasbord of images that flow from her head, toward the conclusion of the tale). Recommended to Jeffers fans, and to anyone looking for children's stories which explore loss and grief.

Show Less

LibraryThing member sloth852

A metaphor of grief and learning to move forward.

Fewer