Mr. Walker Steps Out
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
Mr. Walker, the human-shaped figure who lives in the traffic signal box and tells pedestrians when it is safe to cross the street, decides to leave his post and experience all that he has been missing, in this sweet and satisfying tale about finding one's place in the world.
Mr. Walker works hard. Every day, he stands in the window of his boxy little house on the corner of Broadway and Main, letting people know when it's safe to cross the street. Usually that is enough. But after a while, watching the world go by without him makes him feel small and unimportant. So he decides to jump down from his box and experience for himself all the wonderful things he’s seen from his post. With each new adventure, he feels bigger and more important. But after enjoying all the wonderful things that the city has to offer, he starts to wonder how his little corner is getting on without him. Then something happens . . . something big. And Mr. Walker wonders if it might be time to go home, to where he's needed most.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The white figure in the "Walk" sign knows he has an important job keeping a busy crosswalk safe in this title for fans of Sign Off and Runaway Signs. But simply observing life feels a little hollow: Mr. Walker yearns to "step out of his boxy little house and do something wonderful himself," writes Graff (Far Away). His carpe diem is the story's centerpiece: Jacques's digital drawings, which combine a bright directness with a wealth of details and subtle textures, take the liberated Mr. Walker from simple pleasures (splashing in puddles, enjoying an airplane kiddie ride outside a store) to the marvelous (savoring a metropolis sunset from a spot that resembles New York's Brooklyn Bridge Park). But when Mr. Walker has to rescue a girl stuck in the middle of a crosswalk from oncoming traffic, he realizes that "he was an important part of it all" and heads back in his box—content to take the occasional vacation. Certain to change the way readers regard the "Walk" signs in their world, this story could also open up a discussion about the intersection of work and personal fulfillment. Ages 4–7. Author's agent: Stephen Barbara, Inkwell Management. Illustrator's agent: Christy Ewers, the CAT Agency.
