Scout's Heaven

This deeply affecting story by Dutch author Tak (Mikis and the Donkey) begins at the moment that Scout, the family dog, takes her last breath. Narrated by two older voices, the story focuses on Little Brother%E2%80%99s puzzlement and grief, and the way the older characters help the younger one to understand what%E2%80%99s happened as they bury their dog together in the rain. Haeringen%E2%80%99s first drawings of Scout and her family appear as simple white lines on black ground, resembling a chalkboard. Later, as Little Brother asks heartbreaking questions (%E2%80%9CWhat about her basket? And her bowl? Is anyone up there giving Scout her food?%E2%80%9D), readers see Scout%E2%80%99s black form against light-hearted vignettes of things she%E2%80%99s chased and eaten and chewed. Tak%E2%80%99s tone remains quiet and rational (%E2%80%9CWe don%E2%80%99t know,%E2%80%9D the siblings say in answer to Little Brother%E2%80%99s questions about heaven; %E2%80%9CWe don%E2%80%99t know what%E2%80%99s up there%E2%80%9D), but the story%E2%80%99s final moment offers a taste of the miraculous. Due to Watkinson%E2%80%99s excellent translation, Tak%E2%80%99s prose reads like poetic vignettes, with a graceful rhythm and distilled meaning in each spare line. It%E2%80%99s a study of grief, but it%E2%80%99s also a portrait of a family able to talk about hard things with love. Ages 4%E2%80%938. (Apr.)