Synopsis
When a little boy bursts into their world, three unusual creatures find answers to their questions in this whimsical story from a stellar pair.
The Lostlet twirls a golden leaf and asks, Where am I? What do I hope for? The Strangelet holds a smooth white pebble and wonders, What am I? What do I dream of? The Oddlet listens to a seashell and muses, Who am I? What do I wish for? Lost in their own worlds, the creatures are powerless to fi nd answers, until a small boy appears who seems stranger, odder, and even more lost than they. As the three creatures comfort the child, they discover their hearts’ desires — while their new friend finds surprising ways to make all their dreams and wishes come true.
Publishers Weekly
The Lostlet, the Strangelet and the Oddlet are three furry sui generis critters who wander a desolate beach, pondering the Big Questions: "What am I?"; "Where am I?"; "Who am I?" When a little boy-"stranger, odder, and more lost than they"-stumbles into their melancholy reveries, their initial clinical reactions ("What's that noise you are making?" asks Oddlet as the boy weeps) give way to offering comfort, which in turn reveals their higher purpose: to love and be loved in return. (In response to the boy's hug, the Oddlet proclaims, "So that's what I've been wishing for... I'm a Huglet!") Despite its simple vocabulary and reliance on repetition, Dunbar's (The Monster Who Ate Darkness) parable-like text feels forced and arcane (it brings to mind the weaker alien-human encounters of the original Star Trek). But there's an inviting sense of scale to Benson's (Owl Babies) ink and watercolor drawings, and his weird, pointy-snouted protagonists possess a cuddly vulnerability-even if it appears that Strangelet has a broccoli floret growing out of its head. Ages 3-up. (May)
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