Award-winning duo Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen have teamed up again, and this time it's for the long haul. Publishing March 14, Barnett and Klassen bring us the first in a trilogy of board books that will keep you guessing until the end. The first in the series, Triangle, tells a story of trickery and sweet(ish) revenge as Triangle sets out to play a sneaky trick on his friend Square and finds himself in a precarious situation.
The narrative is fresh and funny, perfectly aimed at board book readers. Like Sam and Dave Dig a Hole, Barnett and Klassen create an open-ended story with adorably absurd circumstances: Barnett keeps the text sparse and dry, and Klassen does his part to match Barnett's pace by injecting movement and character into the illustrations. Klassen builds a very specific visual environment for the book, creating a believable world with easy to read characters that feels well-rounded and complete.
Hands-down, the best part of the character design is the eyes -- there is NO room for interpretation when Square gets upset with Triangle's sneaky trick. The eyes tell readers everything they need to know, which is just incredible given that the characters are literally a triangle and a square. It's a wonderful means of exploring shape in a subtle way while putting forth a greater story.
Triangle publishes from Candlewick Press March 14, 2017, with Square and Circle following in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
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