The Sun Is Yellow

Czech artist/illustrator Pacovská won the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for illustration in 1992, the same year this open-ended exploration of color was first published in Germany. This isn’t so much a story as a collection of surreal vignettes, often featuring a dour snail and a smiling frog. By turning wheels, opening windows, and peering through die-cuts, readers can explore the ways colors interact, but the nonsensical text, random procession of events (oddities like a red moon and a clown named Kaspar are introduced, never to appear again), and lack of meaningful narrative will likely prove too abstract for many readers. Ages 5–7. (Sept.)