There’s This Thing

In an allegorical story about elusive love, a wistful girl with a mop of red hair seeks an undefined “thing.” “It’s all...” she begins, as a soda bottle erupts in a rainbow geyser, “and...” she continues, hugging a cat. Her attempts to capture the “thing” include leaving a trail of crumbs (which attracts a noisy goose) and setting a trap (which snags an angry brown bear). Brecon’s art mirrors the girl’s loneliness—a wild parade she leads is interrupted by a rainstorm, and as she sits gloomily on a curb, shop windows advertise keys (“I really want to share my heart, but I just can’t find the right way to open it”). Eventually, a boy joins her on a park bench, delivering the message that love often comes when one stops searching for it, but some readers may find the girl’s vaguely described longings tricky to parse. Ages 5–8. Agency: The Bright Agency. (Dec.)