The Flamingo: A Graphic Novel Chapter Book

by Guojing

Overview

A stunning graphic novel filled with gorgeous, whimsical illustrations about an imaginative girl and a bright pink feather that leads to a journey with a baby flamingo. A "perfect" (Shelf Awareness) chapter book from the highly acclaimed creator of the New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year, The Only Child.

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR • Kirkus Reviews • School Library Journal • Shelf Awareness • Horn Book

A little girl arrives, excited for a beachy vacation with her Lao Lao. The girl and her grandmother search for shells, chase crabs, and play in the sea, but when the girl finds an exquisite flamingo feather in her grandmother's living room, her vacation turns into something fantastical.

This nearly wordless graphic novel begins in nostalgic sepia toned illustrations and explodes into riotous color as Lao Lao tells her granddaughter the story of a little girl who finds herself as the caretaker of a baby flamingo.

The Flamingo is a tale of imagination, reunions, and connection that readers are sure to reach for again and again.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593127315
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	09/27/2022
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	301,037
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	AD430L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Guojing is a renowned artist celebrated for her picture books, including Stormy and The Only Child. Here she turns her visual storytelling talent to the graphic novel format with multiple panels per page and a compelling story that will appeal to readers who are ready for the next step after picture books.

Editorial Reviews

★ 07/18/2022

Immaculately drawn and paced, this largely wordless intergenerational portrait tells a double story about sturdy bonds across time and space. Panels in shades of charcoal gray and desaturated red capture the reunion of a young grandchild flying alone to visit their enthusiastically waving Lao Lao, who cues as Chinese. Asked about a pink feather found in a flamingo-shaped cup, Lao Lao spins a tale—told in kaleidoscopic full-color art—about a kid who finds an egg at the beach, takes it home, and finds themself the caretaker of a baby flamingo. Guojing (Stormy) represents the growing flamingo’s changing body with marvelous care, and vibrant sequences in which the bird, the child, and a terrier grow closer provide moments of sheer delight, as in images of the young flamingo sitting stuffed in a pocket and perched on the child’s head. Soon, though, it’s time for both children to say goodbye—to the flamingo and to Lao Lao, too—transitions attended by soaring moments, and followed by a lovely art-centered coda. The parallels between human love and migrating birds are unmistakable in this elegant parable of faithful return. Ages 5–8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

★ "[A] tender tale." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★ “Immaculately drawn and paced” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "Guojing's brilliant, near-wordless picture book is a visual feast celebrating family and unlikely friends." —Shelf Awareness, starred review

★ “For readers who enjoy emotionally moving stories about family, love, and the power of imagination.”—School Library Journal, starred review

★ “Guojing’s expressive digital, watercolor, and colored-pencil illustrations have a timeless, cinematic quality…”—The Horn Book, starred review

"A loving ode to intergenerational creativity." —The Bulletin

From the Publisher

★ 11/01/2022

Gr 3 Up—A girl goes to visit her grandmother, who lives in a house near the beach. She finds a pink feather at Lao Lao's house that sparks her curiosity. The book gently transitions between the real and the imaginary, as Lao Lao tells her a story about a girl who found an egg at the beach. Lao Lao tells her story a little at a time, gradually revealing that a tiny white chick hatched out of the egg, and that the chick grew up into a pink flamingo, which eventually flew away. When the girl returns home, she's inspired to write her own conclusion to the story, which (be forewarned) might make more sensitive readers cry. This book is mostly wordless, which will give readers more time to focus on the ethereal, and often breathtaking, artwork. The palette changes as the story moves from the real world into the fictional and back again. The real world is beautiful, but has only a few colors, while the fictional world uses many colors to great effect, like Isabelle Arsenault's artwork in Fanny Britt's Jane, the Fox & Me. The cover illustration of a flamingo with outstretched wings on a fire escape will probably get the most attention, but some of the interior artwork—the image of the girl, her dog, and the chick watching a sunset together—is equally astonishing. VERDICT For readers who enjoy emotionally moving stories about family, love, and the power of imagination.—Andrea Lipinski

School Library Journal

★ 2022-08-17
A child’s visit to their grandmother creates lasting stories.

At Lao Lao’s coastal home, flamingo motifs are everywhere. The child asks Lao Lao about a feather in a flamingo-shaped cup, and as the scene shifts, we see a girl walking along a beach and discovering an egg, out of which a flamingo chick eventually hatches. In between kite flying, bao steaming, and their own coastal walk, Lao Lao shares her story with her grandchild. Friendship between the flamingo and the girl grows, but the time comes for goodbyes. The flamingo flies away, and the girl hopes for the bird’s return. Just as Lao Lao’s story concludes, a flock of flamingos serendipitously fills the sky. Grandmother and grandchild must part, too. Back at home, feather in hand, the child begins to write their own story, and their imagination takes flight. Guojing’s tender tale uses the migration of birds to explore how family bonds endure despite separation and the passage of time. The spare text in this mostly wordless tale is well placed. Rendered in Photoshop, watercolor, and colored pencil, the illustrations depict expressive faces and dynamic perspectives, beautifully capturing the joy of a hug, the wonder of visiting new places, the sadness of saying goodbye, and the hope of reuniting. The use of color is inspired; muted illustrations with pops of reddish pink depict the present, while both Lao Lao’s and the child’s stories are portrayed in vibrant hues. Use of the term Lao Lao cues the characters as Chinese, though locations aren’t specified.

This tale soars. (Graphic fiction. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews