Everything about this book is so beautiful! The illustration is done in perfect color harmonies, and each person seems alive. The creamy, matte paper is bound with a mustard yellow cover, and wrapped in a two-sided printed jacket.

Like his last book, Seasons, Blexbolex uses each 2-page spread to express an idea, with one word illustrated on each page. “Homeless Person” on the left, shows a man sleeping in a cardboard box. “Camper” on the right, shows a girl lounging in a field. It’s a little puzzle, forcing you to think about similarities and differences between different human activities and professions.

I can’t believe that I have gone so long in my life without knowing Tomi Ungerer. Upon reading of him, I was initially struck by his illustrations for this book. I loved the character of the Moon Man with all of his Uncle Fester-like qualities. The cherubic grin and innocent wonder in his face are a perfect contrast for his stark whiteness and bald head. His old man suit distinctly finishes the look.

The book itself is the tale of an outsider, misunderstood and driven away because he is different. This outsider, The Moon Man, comes to Earth to see what it’s all about after so long just watching. The story’s details are perfectly weird and its commentary smart. The attitudes of the government officials and very important committees seem to have a Dr. Strangelove feel. The ice cream man on his bicycle nods to our consumerism in the wake of any major occurrence but the whole approach is absurd and the results are adorable.

Ungerer’s work is prolific as he has been writing and illustrating children’s books since the 1950’s. Luckily, there is a retrospective of his work currently at the Eric Carle Museum in Amherst, MA. Check it out here. And buy Moon Man here.

And yes, the actual book has that same smell that I remember from all of my Big Golden Mercer Mayers (Some of you know what I’m talking about…). I’m so glad that Phaidon has been publishing such wonderful stories for children.

I could have included the above mentioned story in a collection of five favorites, but the tales of George and Martha are the artist’s pure vision and a theme that I’ve come to embrace in life thanks to my wife. She introduced me to George and Martha. It was a wonder that I had never read these stories before. I was familiar with many of James Marshall’s books. His illustrations have been embedded into my vernacular. But it was only fitting that my wife/best friend introduced me to a collection of stories about two hippos who are also best friends. We found the book on the bargain shelf at a Borders bookstore and decided we should have it, “were we ever to have children…” Well, we have a daughter now, and I have an obsession with children’s books.

What interests me are the repeated images you find on any illustrated page – Martha is cooking soup and the painting on the wall reads, “soup’s on.” Martha has a flower in her hair and the picture behind her shows the same flower with the title, “le fleur.” Of course, this picture is only up during Martha’s French lesson to George, a story which also included the term “ooh la la” in a book that Martha is reading. So funny cute! Every time there is a framed picture or phrase on the wall it bears a second or a third look. I also like the way Martha’s striped dress matches her house, or George’s gold tooth blends in with a yellow background. You see, when George loses his tooth he has it replaced by a gold one. It is forever that way in all subsequent stories. Don’t forget to look for the dentist’s name. And the style is so simple. The wideness of the hippos is in perfect contrast to their tiny eyes and delicate grace. The term, “My stars!” is such a sweet way of cursing I’m not even sure it is a curse at all. Details like these make the characters feel so real.

When George finds himself frustrated with Martha because he is trying to read to himself and she keeps interrupting and fidgeting, he must leave. Reading alone to himself he finds that the book states, “it is important to be considerate to your friends.” George thinks, “Martha should read this book.” When he finds her, Martha apologizes for fidgeting on account of her loneliness. George forgets about sharing this new info and the two share stories well into the night instead. In every story we find that it is always better to have a friend.

The collection is available here.