Where Are You, Brontë?
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- USD 10.99
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- USD 10.99
Publisher Description
Five starred reviews!
“A gentle delight, simultaneously honoring both the dog dePaola lost and the artist we lost in turn.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
This touching story about love, loss, and remembrance in the wake of losing a beloved pet is the final completed book written by beloved creator Tomie dePaola, with art by award-winning illustrator Barbara McClintock.
Where are you, Brontë?
The day you left me, I knew I would miss you.
And I did. Every day, every night.
But then, I knew you were right here, still with me, in my heart forever.
Children’s book legend Tomie dePaola tells the emotional and deeply personal story about overcoming his grief after the loss of his beloved dog, Brönte.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In a wordless introductory sequence to this story rooted in memory, late Caldecott and Newbery Honoree dePaola, portrayed with red-rimmed spectacles, beholds in billowing clouds the form of his terrier Brontë. Indoors, he looks down at an empty dog bed, made more poignant by the presence of balls and toys. Reminiscing text that begins "Where Are You, Brontë?" first recalls the young dog's arrival: "You flew to me on an airplane from Chicago." When Brontë whimpers in his crate, he's invited onto dePaola's bed... "for the next twelve and a half years." Melding her distinctive clear-line style with dePaola's own, McClintock (Tomfoolery!) captures Brontë's beguiling antics as a young pup, and later, as an older dog adapting to blindness ("You were able to find all three of your beds"). After the dog's death, dePaola is shown drawing the dog's portrait and fitting it inside a frame with a smile—"still with me, in my heart forever." Alongside images that cleverly summon beats from dePaola's works, simple words about difficult emotions offer layers of comfort for readers wondering about the whereabouts of a late loved one. It's a moving ode to Brontë and to dePaola—the creator who loved him. Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. An illustrator's note concludes. Ages 4–8.
