Pandora

Starred review from February 6, 2017
In a landscape of rolling hills cloaked in a gentle haze, Pandora lives off civilization’s debris. She’s a lonely fox who has built herself a house atop a mound of old furniture, discarded toys, and other castoffs, all drawn in mesmerizing detail. Like the solitary hero of Marianne Dubuc’s The Lion and the Bird, she’s taken by surprise when a delicate bird falls out of the sky and into her care. A spread shows her fast asleep on the floor next to the bird’s makeshift nest in a cardboard box, her brushy tail curled protectively over it. Pandora nurses the bird back to health—it brings her twigs and flowers, “gifts from faraway lands”—but one day it doesn’t return, and she’s bereft. While she sleeps, something miraculous happens. Sprouting into life, the bird’s nest grows into an otherworldly garden, covering her room and her house with flowers and foliage—a reflection, perhaps, of the love that has grown in her heart. The bird’s return is another miracle. As an artist, Turnbull (The Sea Tiger) has two crucial gifts: the power of imagination and the ability to make emotions visible. Ages 4–7.

Starred review from March 1, 2017
A gentle fox finds a friend in a desolate world.Pandora the fox, who wears a simple blue dress, stands resolutely in the middle of a heaping pile of trash: mattress, bird cage, bicycle wheel, old Victrola, etc. She lives alone "in a land of broken things." The landscape has a sepia tint, but there are pops of color inside Pandora's home, where she repairs found articles. One day, outside her window, a bird falls from the sky. It's broken too, but Pandora knows how to fix it. She makes it snug in a box full of shavings and watches over it. As the days go by, the bird grows stronger. He hops, then flies short distances, always returning to Pandora and his box at night. Until one day he doesn't, and all that's left is his nest inside the box. Pandora fears her heart will break. But day by day, from the nest of twigs, trees and flowers and leaves grow, covering the landscape. One morning, Pandora awakens to the sound of bird song and sees a land of green things. And guess who comes back? Turnbull's beautiful pictures are worth the proverbial thousand words; she wisely keeps the text to a minimum. Her soft, spacious drawings judiciously vary perspective and composition to great effect. Pandora alone in her bed in the upper left of a double-page spread with the empty box in the bottom right says everything. A valuable ecological message, deftly delivered. Incandescent. (Picture book. 3-9)

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June 1, 2017

PreS-Gr 1-Pandora, an anthropomorphic fox, finds slivers of beauty in a wasteland of discarded objects. From piles of detritus, she ferrets out treasures-a teddy bear, a van Gogh painting-repairs broken objects, and fills her house, a rickety cottage on stilts, with them. Her solitary existence is interrupted when an injured bird drops from the sky. Pandora nurses the bird, and as he becomes stronger, he flies off on brief trips, coming back with presents of flowers, leaves, and twigs. When the bird fails to return one day, a bereft Pandora is alone again-but everything is about to change. Through inspired composition and a varying palette (the brightness of the fox's cozy home contrasts with the beige of the eerie landscape), this simple tale captures the joy of friendship and the anguish of loneliness. The rich, soft watercolor and colored pencil artwork tempers the harsh setting and has a classic storybook feel. The elegant, spare prose allows the visuals to take center stage and will leave readers asking questions about the origins of this strange, seemingly postapocalyptic world. Though she may have inherited a dreary world, Pandora's attempts to revitalize it will inspire readers who may be discouraged with humankind's negative effect on the planet. VERDICT Bound to generate discussion among adults and children alike, this quietly stirring offering can be read on multiple levels: as a love letter to friendship, a warning against careless treatment of the environment, or as a testament to the power of hope. Best shared one-on-one.-Mahnaz Dar, School Library Journal

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2017
Preschool-G Pandora is a sweet and shy fox who lives alone in a land of broken things. She's clevershe built her handsome home with items other people left behind. Lonely, she spends her life repairing and repurposing discarded items. One day, a living, broken bird falls from the sky, so she cares for him until he can fly again. He always comes back with seeds and flowers, worms and insectsgifts from faraway lands. But one time the bird doesn't return, and in an almost empty double-page spread washed with gray, Pandora lies forlorn in her bed. As the days go by, the warm sun causes all the living things to grow and flourish, until the bird returns, and they rejoice in their friendship. Gorgeous artwork from Kate Greenaway Medal nominee Turnbull uses soft pastels to show the young fox and bird forging their friendship. Children will delight in exploring and identifying the detailed lost things and contrasting them with the abundant beauty of the growing plants in this dreamy fable.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)