Into the Mighty Sea

Color becomes metaphor and means of expression in Abundis and Alonso’s vivid story of an artistic child grappling with sensory and emotional overload. At the start of the party for narrator Mariel’s hermanito, “never-ending orange hugs,/ blushing pink besos,/ and waves of green ‘¡Holas!’/ squish my home with too many touches/ and too much noise.” The child finds solace by making art in the garden with similarly wired Papi, but when Mariel’s hermanito acts out, “red clouds ink angry thoughts” and result in a “mighty sea” of emotion. Utilizing swirling colors, thin-lined illustrations embrace surrealism in scenes of Mariel rowing a paper boat with pencil as paddle. As the child’s thoughts calm (“let it flow—then try to let it go,” Papi says), the color palette fades and red’s meaning shifts to “love.” Text and artwork alike aptly portray overwhelm in this perceptive work. An author’s note concludes. Ages 4–8. (June)