This Story Is For You / written and illustrated by Greg Pizzoli
Bibliographic citation:
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion, ©2018
48 pages
ISBN 978-14847-5030-8
Age recommendation: 3 years and up
Format: Picture Book/ Hardcover Annotation: Two children in the midst of play imagine their how their friendship will last over distance and time. This story celebrates imaginative play, friendship and individuality.
Review:
The scene opens with two players sitting amidst drawings of a ship, a lighthouse, a message and a bottle, the sun, moon and stars. We, the audience are invited to embark on a journey of friendship; one that is sparked by interest and curiosity of one another and strengthened by shared interests, like games, song, and the moon. We witness time pass, and journeys separate them; but the magic of friendship (and maybe a message in a bottle) brings the two together again. The play laid out before the reader is the creative work of two friends, imagining their journey through space and time and how friendship endures and has the power to make friends irreplaceable and always present, no matter where they are.
This Story Is For You might remind one of On the Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman, in the way that it reads like a poem in that it repeats text and takes meaningful breaks, giving strength to the words as a friendship vow, more than a narrative. While there are some lines that might confound a straightforward reader, and leave some wondering who the target audiences is, ("And if I pass a ship, I'll turn toward the light, and wave in the darkness, to say that I know you."), it provides an opportunity to explore interpretation with older readers and spend some time in dialogue. The text itself is bold, set against vivid backdrops of yellows, fluorescent oranges, deep blues and greens. In true fashion, author and illustrator Greg Pizzoli gives the reader simple, graphic drawings that spill off the page and offer many visual elements for little readers to drink in and ponder.
Themes/Issues: Friendship, Individuality, Play, Imagination.
Early Literacy Skill Value:
Print Motivation: Young readers will enjoy the bright colors, eye-catching graphics, and simple text against a vivid color scheme.
Vocabulary: Encourages vocabulary learning through clear representation of objects, colors, animals, etc.
Print Awareness: Uses simple, clear text on contrasting background, repetitive and rhyming words.
Narrative Skills: Complex. Narrative concept is found inside of the play being acted out. It's a narrative inside a letter to a friend.
Phonological Awareness: repetitive words and words that rhyme represented in text
Letter Knowledge: Bold, easy-to-see text and letters