One Fall Day - Hardcover

PreSchool-K-A gentle text coupled with enchanting illustrations make this story a standout. As a reassuring voice recalls the events of a golden autumn day, a cast of cherished toys act them out. A sweet-faced doll sleeps beneath a colorfully cross-stitched comforter, while a soft, sock-puppet cat curls up nearby. In the morning, they are joined by other friends: a fluffy stuffed polar bear, a green clay dinosaur, a folded-paper crane, a shiny yellow ball, and a bright blue car with bottle-top wheels. After a hearty breakfast, the companions head outdoors to play, listen to a passing train, and get swept up in a rain storm. As the shadows grow long, they head inside to prepare for another cozy night. Bang uses simple, poetic phrases that stir the imagination: "Rain beats down on you. Wind swirls the rain in circles, sweeps it sideways, lifts you up to fly like yellow leaves." The even pace and gentle tone of the language lull readers into a mood of comfort and security. Photographed to retain their three-dimensional quality, the collage constructions create a wonderfully detailed miniature world. Varying angles and perspectives make the pictures more interesting and realistic, while bright yellows and greens capture the warm light of fall day. By weaving together evocative language and skillfully crafted illustrations, Bang brings these inanimate objects to life.
Joy Fleishhacker, New York Public Library
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The ever-inventive Bang (two Caldecott Honors) uses some of her favorite images in a deceptively simple bedtime story with several layers of visual and conceptual meaning. Bang has constructed three-dimensional collages of handmade toys and interiors made of recognizable materials (a boxy blue car with bottle-cap wheels gives a clue to the sizes of the originals), which are then photographed with extraordinary clarity. The story takes a dark-faced doll (addressed in the second person) through one happily productive day. ``You'' and your friends--gray cat, paper crane, polar bear, dinosaur, yellow ball--wake in an intensely red room, well appointed with art supplies; enjoy breakfast and outdoor play; wonder at a rain storm and the leaves it brings down; spend the afternoon working, reading, and creating a childlike painting that recaps many of the day's activities; and complete the cycle after a cozy bedtime ritual. The busy, predictable day, crisp images, and primary colors that dominate the art are all perfect for very young children; meanwhile, Bang's sophisticated compositions and creative use of imagery and materials will engage older children and adults. A beautiful and intriguing book with much to discover at any age. (Picture book. 1-6) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.