Faye Hanson

A young boy wanders through his life in wonder in this gorgeous picture-book from author/artist Faye Hanson. Whatever he is doing, wherever he is going - walking to school, sitting in the laboratory - the boy envisions fastastic vistas around him. It is only in his art class however, that he is given free rein to express what is in him...

A picture-book debut from English artist Faye Hanson, The Wonder is a phenomenally beautiful title, one which contains numerous wordless two-page spreads in which the boy's visions are brought to life on paper. Vivid colors, fantastic shapes and objects, are all combined in intricate ways to create little windows into an imaginary world. As much as I loved the visuals here, I also appreciated the structure of the story itself, in which the boy's natural sense of wonder is continually repressed, until finally it finds release - through art! The dedication, in which Hanson thanks her mother for believing in her daydreams, shows that there is a little bit of autobiography going on here. Whatever the case may be, wherever the inspiration arises, this is a lovely book, and a wonderful tribute to the power of the imagination, and of creative genius. Recommended to anyone who appreciates beautiful picture-books, or who is looking for children's stories about the strength of wonder in our lives.… (meer)

This is a story about a boy whose head is always full of wonder. We follow him on an average-seeming school day, where his daydreams transform the world around him. Not everyone appreciates the boys wonder and amazement with everything; it is only in art class that he realizes he can bring the wonder out of his head for the whole world to enjoy. THE WONDER is a great book about the power of imagination. I think it's a book that both children and adults will enjoy because of the illustrations. This book can be used to prompt brainstorming, sequencing and character development. I absolutely love the illustrations in this book; with bright and bold colors this book is full of charm and excitement. The main character invokes wonder and takes you away on an imaginary fantasy ride. Highly recommend this book for all ages.… (meer)

The Wonder is a tremendous book. I saw the cover of it and was immediately engaged and curious to see what this story was about. The illustrations are done by the author, Faye Hanson, and are absolutely fascinating to look at. They are full of detail. They are dramatic, vibrant, flowing, and filled with interesting content. Some of the items in the pictures reminded me of images I would see in a Dr. Seuss book, which I thought was really cool. The plot is all about a little boy and his imagination as he is going to school. He seems to always be daydreaming and his mind takes him so far away that he gets yelled at for not doing what he is supposed to be doing or being in the way. The illustrations in the beginning of the book are all in brown tones except for a little blurb which is what he is imagining. Finally, he gets to his art class and his teacher tells him to draw anything he wants. The next few pages are huge illustrations of what he had imagined on the way to school. Each page relates to what he was imagining while he was getting yelled at, but even more. This book was very appealing to the eye and would catch the attention of a child right off the bat. It teaches children that your imagination is endless and never wrong. It is subjective and can always change. Your imagination can even be of something that does not exist in the real world. It also shows that you should not let anyone tell you to stop using your imagination because at the end of the book you can see the boy used his imagination and created a sculpture. His sculpture was then put into an art museum so that he could share his imagination with the world.… (meer)