Perfect Picture Book Friday Looks at The Blue Hour

As a child, I had an ever-growing collection of picture books given to me by my mother. For birthdays, Valentine’s Day, Easter, and Christmas, I could always count on receiving another. As birthdays came and went, chapter books replaced picture books. Later, middle-grade novels replaced chapter books. But one thing stayed the same . . .  My mom kept buying picture books–just not for me.

My mother, a scientific illustrator for the Field Museum in Chicago, had a deep love of art and greatly enjoyed the variety of styles used to illustrate stories for children. So maybe, being surrounded by picture books all my life, it isn’t surprising I write for children.

The picture book I’d like to share with you today is one I’m sure my mother would have bought for herself if she were still here. She would have marveled at the careful and close attention to details and the gentle swoop of lines that create the feathers on the birds. She would have admired the vast pallet of blues used to bring about the mood of each scene, and she would have smiled at the artist’s choice to include dashes of red in the botanicals as well as the cheeks and beaks of the animals throughout. If you head to your library or bookstore to look at this book, I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do.

Title – The Blue Hour

Written and illustrated by – Isabelle Simler  

Published by – Eerdmans Books for Young Readers – 2017

Suitable for ages – 3-7

Topics – Blue animals and flowers, nature, animal activities.

Opening –  The day ends. The night falls. And in between . . . there is the blue hour.

Amazon’s Review –  View it HERE. A lovely and tranquil celebration of nature

The sun has set, the day has ended, but the night hasn’t quite arrived yet. This magical twilight is known as the blue hour. Everything in nature—sky, water, flowers, birds, foxes—comes together in a symphony of blue to celebrate the merging of night and day.

With its soothing text and radiant artwork, this elegant picture book displays the majesty of nature and reminds readers that beauty is fleeting but also worth savoring.

Why do I like this book? Though the text is sparse, each word is carefully chosen, and the brief line given to each subject, animal or botanical, reveals something interesting. The author is also a gifted artist whose gorgeous nature illustrations shine in this breathtaking book.

Want to learn a little more about Isabelle Simler? Click HERE.