Inside All

by Margaret H. Mason, Holly Welch (Illustrator)

Overview

All over the world, children want the same thing - the comfort of knowing that they belong, that they are part of something meaningful. Inside All takes the reader on a nesting doll-like journey, from the glowing edges of the universe into the warm heart of a sleepy child at bedtime, showing how we each have our place inside the All, and the All has its place inside each of us.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781584691112
Publisher:	Dawn Publications
Publication date:	09/01/2008
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 10.60(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD440L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 8 Years

Editorial Reviews

PreS-Gr 3

After a quote from Einstein ("A human being is part of the whole, called by us the 'Universe'"), the poetic text begins: "Inside all /Is a universe/Energy flowing./Inside the universe/Is a galaxy/Milky and glowing." The verse spirals down eventually to a child in bed: "Inside your heart/Is all /Love overflowing." This abstract concept is put into words quite well in a rhythmic text accompanied by mainly abstract lush blue and green vistas of the universe, stars, Earth, village, etc., each with a white star shining somewhere on one of the pages. The final picture is of a child dancing high on a mountaintop underneath the stars, holding the white star in his hand. Although the author and illustrator succeed in their intentions of giving children a sense of belonging to the universe, the subject is rather esoteric and the book is not essential for all collections, though it is definitely an artistic addition.-Judith Constantinides, formerly at East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA

School Library Journal

Mason and Welch present a story that folds in on itself and then out. Swirling colors and abstract spirals telescope from the universe, to the galaxy, to a valley and a village, to a home, a child's bedroom, the child snuggled beneath a quilt, to the child's own heart. With a quote from Einstein as its touchstone, the text opens into sweet rhythms: "Inside all / Is a universe / Energy flowing. / Inside the universe / Is a galaxy / Milky and glowing." With richly colored mixed-media swirls that resolve into hills and trees, windows and bedrooms, each opening displays double-page, full-bleed pictures with a single white star superimposed throughout. The last line of each three-line text curves to echo the spiral motif. The images tend toward the abstract but are recognizable, creating a very gentle and quite moving bedtime story. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews