From a debut author-illustrator! What if a little owl fell from his nest? A reassuring story for the very young told with whimsy and simple, vibrant artwork. Uh-oh! Little Owl has fallen from his nest and landed with a whump on the ground. Now he is lost, and his mommy is nowhere to be seen! This book's predictable text and colorful artwork will captivate your toddler as he reads about Little Owl’s journey to find his mommy. When you encourage your child to explore the book with you, you're helping him develop beginning writing and other early reading skills. Little Owl Lost has nearly every redeemable quality of an exemplary book. Present is scale, surprise, hidden secrets, suspense, color, white space, story—and most of all—cute animals with big, expressive eyes. But what is most striking to me is the dramatically graphic style in which illustrator/author Chris Haughton has drawn this story—masterful capturing of forms with sparing essential detail. From what appears to resemble cut paper, each illustration carries the marks of both craftsmanship and happenstance, not unlike the work of Leo Lionni and Eric Carle. Chris actually creates these illustrations from graphite drawings that are scanned secretly colored and composed in his computer. However sophisticated and digital his method, he has maintained a rawness that looks every bit ‘unplugged.’ Though rendered in completely flat colors, Chris achieves remarkable depth—particularly in his lushly forested landscapes—with the use of multiple subtle overlaying tints of vibrant and complimentary colors. In what feels like a festive Mexican palette, he has strayed far from reality and created a fantasy world that’s both enticing and believable. I do not own the rights to this book.

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