Sidewalk Flowers is about a young girl who goes on a walk with her father and finds weedy wildflowers in the cracks of sidewalks and walls. Instead of keeping them for herself, she passes them out to a man sleeping on a park bench, a dead bird, and saves just enough for her mother and siblings at home. The illustrations were one of my favorite things about this book, how the pop of color stemmed from the little girl and the flowers. I would give this wordless picture book a 4 out of 5 because it captures the gentle message to stop and smell the flowers- and share them with others!
Title: Sidewalk Flowers
Author: Jon Arno Lawson
Illustrator: Sydney Smith
Publisher/Date: Groundwood Books 2015
ISBN: 978-1-55498-431-2
Rating: 4 out of 5
The technique of using color sparingly in wordless picture books is huge right now. There are many books coming out that use primarily black and white to set the tone and then a pop of color for symbolic effect. It is almost overdone at this point, but when done well it can be very powerful.
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