A young girl and her grandfather used scraps from her grandfather’s junkyard for their projects. Their latest project remains unfinished after his death.
The girl and her dog walk through the darkness of the junkyard until they find a buried secret. A turn of a key sets in motion something magical.
The illustrations are extraordinary, capturing the granddaughter’s grief and the darkness she finds herself surrounded by as she comes to terms with her loss.
There was something both lovely and sad about the fact that the project the girl was working on with her grandfather before he died is complete by the end of the book.
I knew I had only scratched the surface after two reads. I watched an interview with the author and read it a third time before even attempting to write a review.
The darkness of some of the early illustrations probably would have scared me as a young child and I definitely would have needed an adult to explain what the story was about because the words alone wouldn’t have made it clear. If I’d read this to a child without having watched the interview with the author, I’m not sure I could have answered their questions.
In case it’s not already obvious, this book has left me conflicted. The story took work for me to figure it out. I had absolutely no idea that the underground object represented the grandfather’s reincarnation until I heard the author say it in the interview.
I saw the glow as a representation of her grandfather’s love but it could also be a guiding light, a reminder that her grandfather’s legacy will never fade, magic that awakens mechanical objects…
The illustrations are some of my favourites in any picture book.
Thank you so much to Walker Studio, an imprint of Walker Books, for the opportunity to read this picture book.
Once Upon a Blurb
There is a path I walk with care.
There is a shadow that follows me there.
There is a place, a secret I keep,
where something special is buried down deep …
A sumptuously illustrated and immersive picture book that speaks to memory, shared moments, and love beyond and between worlds.
Schizanthus Nerd 