Dawn by Marc Martin

Less a story and more a series of illustrations paired with poetic text, 

the book is a testament to Martin’s immense artistic talents.

Truly stunning. Kirkus Star review

The series of single words in this book feel like a visual poem:

dawn

dew

deer

sound

spring

still

conceal 

reveal

Other words resonate with richness and meaning such as glimmer; shimmer; forage; formation and chorus.

Blurb from author web page: As the sun slowly rises, many things happen in a small window of time. The world comes alive with the actions of animals, plants, clouds, and sky. A deer drinks, an owl wakes, a dandelion shimmers in the light. A ladybug climbs, a fish jumps, birds call in a chorus. Geese fly away in formation. A flower blooms. Beautifully illustrated with glowing imagery and written with a charming simplicity holding appeal for new readers, Marc Martin’s ode to the slow-blooming beauty of a sunrise and the life that unfolds in its radiance narrows the lens to show the wonder of time passing.

You can see inside Dawn here. See more of his work on Instagram.

The book’s thoughtful visual pacing echoes its rhythmic text. Martin mixes single-image scenes with combinations of vertical and horizontal panels to guide readers through small, quick happenings—for example, a series of four vertical panels depicting snapshots of a ladybug climbing a dew-laced blade of grass (“climb / quench / drip / drop”), and bigger events that demand pause, such as the panoramic final full-bleed, double-page spread of the rising sun. Horn Book Star review

When you share this book with your young reading companion you should slow down and take your time and then on subsequent readings notice the way the frames of the illustrations change and the way the light increases and also the link between the dewdrop and the ladybird from the title page with other images later in the book. Then get up early and watch the dawn - it usually takes about ten minutes - notice the light, but also listen for the dawn chorus and maybe do this more than once to see changes over different seasons. This idea reminds me of The Night Walk by Marie Dorléans. I also need to mention the beautiful book design and wonderful paper quality. This is a book to own, to cherish and of course to also add to your school library.

Image source: Marc Martin

You can see and hear Marc Martin sharing his book on Instagram.

One of the best parts of attending an author or illustrator talk is the discovery of the back-story about the writing of a book. Here are some things I learnt today at Gleebooks Kids about Marc Martin (this is my third post about him so you would think I know all of this, but I didn't. Click on his name in the labels for this post to read about other books and more):

• Trivia - his first job was at KMart and he likes eating coffee eclairs.
• Books - his new book due in October is about Antarctica - I should have asked "Have you been there?"
• A staff member from Candlewick posted some photos over a period of just seven minutes to show the dawn - this gave Marc Martin the idea for his book. (I would love to find those photos).
• The text came first then the illustrations and it took three years to make this book. (It is always good to tell this to your students - the craft of writing and illustrating takes time)
• This book is not a traditional narrative but Marc Martin hopes it will open up conversations between children and their parents.
• His own favourite page has the text treetops and tree trunks and beautifully shows two different perspectives of the forest with the deer from earlier in the book looking straight at the reader but also ready to run if startled. The page with the dandelion blowing in the breeze took the most time to create. He included a deer to give this book a universal feel and also because this book comes from a US publisher Candlewick.  (Here in Australia and the UK this publisher is called Walker Books). 
• As an illustrator he has a filmic perspective. His illustrations allow the viewer/reader to zoom in and out just like a camera. 
• His favourite films are from Studio Ghibli such as My Neighbor Totoro; Kiki’s Delivery Service and Spirited Away. He also mentioned The tree of life by Terrence Malick.
• The US copy of this book from Candlewick comes with a dust jacket - what a pity our Australia copies do not include this - and under the dust jacket is a different image - I should have taken a photo!
• The US edition also has a subtitle: Watch the World Awaken
• He writes and illustrates his books, but some have a text by another writers such as We are Starlings by Donna Jo Napoli and Every child a Song by Nicola Davies. 

As always the event at Gleebooks here in Sydney was so well organised by Rachel Robson. She had a display of the page layouts used by Marc Martin, a set of Marc's books with fairy lights, an art activity for the children (and adults) and really fun prompts to encourage participants to draw sequences like the ones Marc Martin used in Dawn. I liked the prompts - "Unwrapping a present"; "Blowing out a candle"; and "Playing in the rain".

Hope I don't jinx Marc and his book but I am sure this will be a 2026 CBCA Picture Book Notable and surely also make the shortlist. Check out my previous post about picture books like Dawn that I called Poetry with Pictures. 

The Boy and the Elephant by Freya Blackwood

The Boy and the Elephant was published in 2021 but because it was entered for the CBCA Picture Book of the Year I haven't been able to talk about this book until now.  Book Week and the announcement of the CBCA Award winners for 2022 happened last month. As a CBCA judge I had to wait to share these books until the judging was completed.

I can date my love of picture books and especially of wordless (IBBY call them Silent Books) to the 1982 CBCA Winner Sunshine by Jan Ormerod.  This year publisher has reissued this book and the companion title Moonlight for the 40th anniversary. By happy coincidence (or perhaps design) the new edition of Sunshine has a preface by Freya Blackwood while Moonlight has one by Margaret Wild. 

Talking about wordless books Jan Ormerod said: 'I depend on the adult to create the right atmosphere and help children read them. When this happens, it is a time for physical closeness and comfort, a quiet time for sharing ideas and feelings, for laughing and learning together.'

I was so thrilled that we had a wordless book entered for the 2022 CBCA Award. I have presented IBBY talks about wordless books and attended exhibitions of fabulous examples from all over the world. 

As with so many books of this genre, The Boy and the Elephant is a book with a deeply emotional, tender and quietly affecting story. Reading and re-reading will reward the reader as they discover so many important details. 

The boy heads off to school on the second spread his body language clearly shows he is not looking forward to this day. In the playground he sits alone and this is emphasised by a subtle shift of tone around him – a little like a very pale spotlight. Using multiple figures to show movement, it is clear, once home from school, the boy is keen to get back to those trees next door. The magic of the solitary moment when he reaches out to touch the elephant is so powerful. This boy is very young. The world of adults is a confusing one. What do those crosses on the trees mean? 

I love the night pages when the boy hugs and tries to move the elephant and then over the page the magic begins. Careful study reveals the boy takes his elephant friend over to his school and the next page is filled with so much hope for the future. 

One my fellow judges said: This is "a book that just sings on so many levels". And the other said: "At its heart this is a story about friendship, and one little boy’s loneliness and sense of displacement in a world where people are too busy to see the beauty in the world. "

Here is the judges report from the CBCA - The Boy and the Elephant was one of the six titles shortlisted this year for the Picture Book of the Year Award:

This wordless book is a deeply emotional, tender, poignant and quietly affecting story which sings on so many levels. Rereading will reward the reader There is the need to stop destruction of the natural environment alongside themes of friendship, loneliness and displacement in a world where people are too busy to see beauty in the world. The characters, settings and transitions in time are engaging, emotive and worthwhile. There are many elements in this book; young and wistful protagonist, peacock and orange colour palette used to represent home life, delicately drawn figures and sensitive use of lighting.

Here are teaching notes from the publisher. If you have a subscription to our Australian Story Box Library they did a splendid production of this book. This is exactly how wordless books should be shared if you want to use a video with a larger group.

Here in Australia, by now, most children in Primary schools are sure to have seen this book but I know people from other places in the world read my blog so I do hope you can find The Boy and the Elephant in your local library, school or book store. Make sure you take time to feel the cover - the title is debossed or indented and don't rush past the first wordless page where the young boy looks out of his window. 

I love the words on the back cover: "A magical and tender wordless picture book about the world we live in and our ability to change it". 

This story is filled with emotion and power. It pulls at your heart and makes you think and smile with wonder. Kids' Book Review

The Boy and the Elephant is a multifaceted tale. Amongst other things, it is a conservation story where, although trees and nature are precious and a refuge, they may be under threat. It pays homage to the imagination, particularly of children, and how they may find solace through their imagination and in nature. It also tenderly suggests how children may have agency to change and improve their circumstances and relationships. Paperbark Words

Each page is rich in emotional detail. Storylinks

Freya Blackwood does have a distinct style. I love the way in so many of her books she shows movement through multiple images.  Here are some of her previous books:

If you want to explore other wordless books here are a few recent ones that I loved:

Here are links to my posts: Stormy, Dandelion's Dream, Aquarium, The Midnight Fair. You are sure to have other wordless books in your library. Here is my extensive Pinterest. And here is a link to the IBBY Silent book project. 

Or you could read books about community action and the action of the individual to save trees or preserve the natural environment: