The Hello Goodbye Window - a picture book review

Virginia Caldwell
Book Review - Genre 1
TWU assignment
LS 5603 - 20

The Hello, Goodbye Window


Bibliographic Data:
Juster, Norton. 2005. The Hello, Goodbye Window. 1st ed. Hyperion Books for Children.

IBSN 978-0786809141

Raschka, Chris. The Hello, Goodbye Window, by Norton Juster. 1st ed. Hyperion Books for Children, 2005. IBSN 978-0786809141

Plot Summary:
The Hello Goodbye Window is a story written with protagonist child as the narrator, about visiting Grandparents, and the special thing about their house – an intriguing window. The story centers on the activities that the window provides for the child and Grandparents, who interact in many ways around it.

Analysis:
This book will appeal to many children because they can relate to the topic of Grandparents, and visiting them. It also shows an intergenerational family relationship within a family who are multiracial. It is written with a magical tone and a fast pace that keeps the reader wondering what will happen next with the window. The child’s voice is enthusiastic, and draws the reader in to the story, which cleverly reveals the good relationship she has with her Grandparents.

The illustration is bright, and somewhat abstract. The pictures are large enough for children to see during a group reading. There are many details in the pictures that encourage discussion. In addition, the illustrations reinforce the loving relationship within the family, by illustratiing instances of physical affection. The pictures also complement the magical tone of the story because they are bright, large, and dreamlike.


Review Excerpts:
BookList, 03/15/2005
PreS-Gr. 2. Two well-known names come together in a book that speaks to the real lives of children and their experiences. The young narrator visits her grandparents, Nanna and Poppy, in their big house. They explore Nanna's garden, and Poppy plays his harmonica. The narrator rides her bike and takes a nap, "and nothing happens till I get up." Looking out the picture window, the "hello, goodbye window," she sees the pizza guy, and, more fancifully, a dinosaur. She also spots her parents coming to pick her up. The curly-haired girl is happy to see them, but sad because it means the end of the visit. The window imagery is less important than the title would make it seem. More intrinsic is Juster's honest portrayal of a child's perceptions (a striped cat in the yard is a tiger) and emotions (being happy and sad at the same time "just happens that way sometimes"). Raschka's swirling lines, swaths, and dabs of fruity colors seem especially vibrant, particularly in the double-page spreads, which have ample room to capture both the tender moments between members of the interracial family and the exuberance of spending time in the pulsating outdoors, all flowers, grass, and sky. -- Ilene Cooper. Booklist, published by the American Library Association.

Kirkus Reviews, 03/01/2005
On the title page, a little girl springs away from her parents; turn the page, and the reader sees only her arms on the gate, the reader taking her perspective as she looks over to the white clapboard house where her Nanna and Poppy's faces stare equally eagerly out of the Hello, Goodbye Window. The exuberant tot proceeds to spend a thoroughly idyllic overnight with her loving grandparents, the stay punctuated by a harmonica serenade, a bike ride ("Not in the street, please") and a nap. Juster adopts the voice of the child, whose present-tense narration is just right, describing pleasures (saying good night to the stars) and perils (the tiger at the back of the garden) with a steady, sweet candor. Raschka's mixed-media illustrations are characteristically loose and energetic, depicting this happy, biracial family with jewel tones and extravagant swirls. As the little girl unwinds at the end of the stay, she imagines the many possible visitors who might come to the Hello, Goodbye Window—but no one is more happily welcomed than her parents, who pick her up after her picture-perfect day. (Picture book. 3-7) Copyright 2005, VNU Business Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved

The above reviews are from Book Index with Reviews. 2007 EBSCO Publishing, Powered by The Title Source TM (Accessed through http://online.twu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_142_1. on 9/6/2007)



Connections:
This book shares a Grandparents theme with the books Grandparents, by by Roser Capdevila and Anne-Laure Fournier Le Ray; Spot Visits His Grandparents, by Eric Hill, The Wednesday Surprise, by Eve Bunting; Song and Dance Man, by Karen Ackerman; and The Grandpa Book, by Todd Parr.

A class activity idea to enhance the experience of this book is to make a Hello, Goodbye Window bulletin board. Every child could wirte something special about his or her grandparents, or wirtie something that he or she would like to do with the window, and then create a drawing to accompany wiritng. Children in the class could share their ideas during a discussion. To conclude, everyone’s papers would go up on the bulletin board display.