Reviews: TILLYS STAYCATION INVENTIVE CREATIVE IMAGINATIVE By Gillian Hibbs Illustration Reviewed by Good Reads with Ronna When I first read TILLYS STAYCATION by first time picture book author/ illustrator Gillian Hibbs (Child’s Play Inc; July 2014; Ages 3-8; $16.99), I couldn’t help but think of my own childhood. How I longed for a real vacation at some exotic getaway. A place with a built-in pool, a beach, and colorful fruity drinks with fancy paper umbrellas. Some place you couldn’t get to by car, but could only reach by plane, boat, or maybe both! In this inventive picture book, Tilly watches as one after another of her friends sets off on vacations to India, Paris, Florida, the beach, and camping, leaving Tilly behind. Her mother says not to worry, they’ll have fun together without having to go away. Tilly, however, is skeptical. While she enjoys having a special breakfast in bed with her mom, she isn’t so sure how much fun they’ll have when the city bus they take drops them off at the library. With a creative mom and an imaginative child, books become adventures, an ordinary picnic becomes a secret rendezvous, and swimming at the local pool – an underwater expedition. Tilly and her mom find treasures at the local market before they head back to their house to spend the night in a vacation home they build for themselves in the living room out of blankets. Hibbs uses bright primary and cheerful secondary colors to mirror the childlike happiness her words and illustrations inspire. Just like Tilly, I never did get that fancy family vacation, not like the ones my friends went on, but I did get to use my imagination to escape the confines of my yard and have a fun-filled summer. By the end of the book, Tilly says, “I can’t wait to tell my friends about my staycation.” MaryAnn Locher, Good Reads With Ronna Bookshop: USA childs-play/usa/bookshop/9781846436017.html UK childs-play/bookshop/9781846435966.html
Posted on: Fri, 25 Jul 2014 18:54:05 +0000