I think Janet recommended this book a long time ago as a comment on one of my posts. Like she mentioned- the book slides out of the jacket and Pinocchio’s nose grows. On the back, a bunch of animals noses grow too. I can’t tell you how good the story is, or how close it comes to the Disney version of the only Pinocchio story I know because I didn’t read any of it. It’s really thick, almost like a fourth grade textbook size. All I’m really interested in are the pictures which are amazing. They are scattered between paragraphs of text, full bleeds and full spreads and little cute spots breaking up the long chapters. It’s as if the publisher handed Sara a big text block and said- make this fun. She hand wrote the chapter titles and added drawings and paper textures in unexpected places. The illustrations are best when they are full of collaged elements- patterned papers, photographs, vintage illustrations, sheet music and office forms. It seems like the perfect book for a kid who doesn’t want to read a chapter book because it’s almost been disguised as a picture book. Sara Fanelli has a website where you can get a good look at her other work and shop for giclee prints. (I know My Map Book was a favorite in my mother’s kindergarten class.) Pick up a copy of Pinocchio here.

© Julia Rothman 2007