The Hello, Goodbye Window

On the surface, The Hello, Goodbye Window, by Norton Juster, illustrated by Chris Raschka, is a story about a little girl visiting her grandparents' house, spending the night, and being picked up by her parents the next day. But it's also a window into the world of childhood. The ordinary events of the day - oatmeal for breakfast, working in the garden, a harmonica concert - are both pictured and narrated from a very believable child's-eye perspective.

Raschka's colorful cartoonlike illustrations have features common to children's drawings - energetic scribbles for hair, heads disproportionately large compared to bodies, arms that curve like noodles, and outlines that don't always connect around the object they're outlining. There's even a childlike preference for low-to-the ground details: in a scene where the girl is listening to her grandfather play the harmonica, an electrical outlet is drawn prominently near the floor, while the top of the wall fades into the white page.

The illustrations are faithful to the little girl's narration. When she reports that a tiger lives behind a bush in the garden, or a dinosaur might come to visit, both tiger and t-rex appear in the illustrations.

Juster writes in a completely believable child's voice. The little girl ascribes heroic stature to her grandparents: the Queen of England likes to visit Nana, while Poppy is an extremely talented musician who can play "Oh, Susannah" "a lot of different ways." She's also childishly self-centered: "nothing happens" in the busy house while she's taking a nap.

In a starred review in School Library Journal, Angela Reynolds wrote, "While the language is bouncy and fun, it is the visual interpretation of this sweet story that sings. Using a bright rainbow palette of saturated color, Raschka's impressionistic, mixed-media illustrations portray a loving, mixed-race family. The artwork is at once lively and energetic, without crowding the story or the words on the page; the simple lines and squiggles of color suggest a child's own drawings, but this is the art of a masterful hand. Perfect for lap-sharing, this book will find favor with children and adults alike."

Susan Straub and K.J. Dell'Antonia recommend The Hello, Goodbye Window in their book Reading With Babies, Toddlers, and Two's, in a section on multicultural books called "Books for Families of All Sizes and Stripes." I might pair this book with another of their recommendations, I Love Saturdays y Domingos by Alma Flor Ada, which is also about a girl visiting grandparents.

Juster, Norton. The Hello, Goodbye Window. 2005. Ill. by Chris Raschka. New York: Michael Di Capua Books. ISBN 978-0786809141

Reynolds, Angela. "The Hello, Goodbye Window." School Library Journal. Qtd. in Amazon.com.

Straub, Susan, and K.J. Dell'Antonia. Reading With Babies, Toddlers, and Two's. 2006. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks. p. 206.