The Building Boy ( 4+ )
By ; Ross Montgomery & David Litchfield
Publisher ; Faber & Faber ( Aug. 2016 )
A powerful tale that traces the cycle of life; love, loss, passions,ambitions and rewards through a simple theme that emphasizes on being inovative and encourages children to be boldly creative. A rare gem of a book!
The story reveals us a beautiful relationship between a little boy and his grandmother; who used to be an Architect. The boy sits next to his grandma every night and listens to stories about her past. She would tell him how she used to build the tallest skycrapers and the most beautiful palaces. They look at her old photographs and dream about building their own beautiful house. She promises him that it will be the best of all.
Montgomery approches his listners with a touching description that offers peace and is well supported by Litchfield`s exquisite opening spreads that oozes with warmth. " Each night before the boy went to bed, he would light the fire........The house would be quiet,except for a turning of a page and the ticking of a clock......."
However as the time passes grandma becomes too old to make dinner or to build the house. On one day the boy comes home to find her gone. The house feels empty.... Then the boy starts to build something out of scrap, he builds day and night for months through rain and snow and finally finishes off a gigantic sculpture of his dear grandma. "And the boy looks into the eyes he had built himself and says "Grandma, wake up" "
The magic comes into life now, when the gigantic grandma holds the little boy`s hand and they run over moon-lit fields and cities with tall skyscrapers, swim through the ocean and finally arrive at a partly built house, on a hill over the city. To the little boy`s question of the house being not completed the grandma answers that "you have allready done it", with the underlying meaning of his allready proven ability to complete the rest.
Montgomery`s beautiful language and moving descriptions together with Litchfield`s ( The Bear and the Piano ) brilliant illustrations will render a compelling impact on the reader and may bring a tear or two.
