Lucy

In Cecil's (Evermore Dragon) town of Bloomville, people flock to vaudeville shows, apartment buildings have stoops, and the neighborhood butcher sports a handlebar moustache. Set over four acts, the story--which could either be considered a very long picture book or a large-format chapter book--follows the lives of three city inhabitants. There's Lucy, a small stray dog who romps through Bloomville, always on the lookout for food: "She takes a big sniff. These are questionable scraps. Very questionable. She eats them anyway." Sam, a grocery clerk, is a gifted juggler with stage fright. Eleanor, Sam's daughter, slips Lucy tidbits when she can. Cozy, repeated sequences, like Lucy's daily morning dash through the city, "Past Bertolt's Butcher Shop.... Past the diner with the questionable scraps," counterbalance the story's mysteries: How did Lucy lose the luxurious home she often remembers? Why is Sam so terrified? Cecil's stylized black-and-white oil paintings are framed in circles, focusing each scene as if through a lens. The conclusion unfolds naturally, while Cecil's understated writing and careful pacing contribute substantially to this sweetly satisfying story. Ages 5-8. (Aug.)

Copyright 2016 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

PreS-Gr 2--As the sun comes up in the town of Bloomville, a small dog awakens from her alley crate; a young girl hugs her father as he leaves the house, but first puts a sausage in her pocket; and the girl's father places juggling balls in his pocket as he makes his way to an unsatisfying job. How these three lives intersect is told in three acts brought to life in rounded, textured, monochromatic images placed on white pages. The composition of each page enhances the illusion of theater, focusing readers' eyes on the action, which takes place center stage (actually, center page). The homeless dog comes to be named Lucy and is befriended and adopted by the girl, Eleanor. Lucy goes on to accidentally help the girl's father gain confidence as a juggler and begin a new chapter. The action, and even a bit of each character's backstory, unfolds in a visual narrative that is accompanied by engaging though brief text. VERDICT This quiet, satisfying tale with its old-fashioned setting is sure to enthrall readers of many ages as they reexamine the detailed illustrations. Best for one-on-one and small group sharing.--Maria B. Salvadore, formerly at District of Columbia Public Library

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Each character's daytime decisions lead to new outcomes after their paths intersect for a show-stopping evening performance during a climactic third act...Children ready to move beyond early readers will appreciate the pace of the page turns and the chance to discover visual details that characters miss.A brief denouement in the final act reveals that each main character has given the others just what they needed; a clever structure and a satisfying story.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Cecil's stylized black-and-white oil paintings are framed in circles, focusing each scene as if through a lens. The conclusion unfolds naturally, while Cecil's understated writing and careful pacing contribute substantially to this sweetly satisfying story.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

All acts but the fourth end with a nightmare: Eleanor's father paralyzed with stage fright as he tries to juggle on stage at the Palace Theater. In the satisfying denouement, dog, girl and father all find what they seek, be it sausage, love or courage. Cecil's circular duotone illustrations have the pleasingly odd, architectural starkness of Edward Gorey's compositions, but with the soft texture of sandstone. Lucy is a sweet stray dog story and an extraordinary exploration of persistence and perspective.
—Shelf Awareness (starred review)

Randy Cecil's Lucy offers a heartfelt reminder that the picture book form can remain relevant and even necessary after the preschool years...The story, too, is full of charming details for careful readers and listeners. Cecil uses repetition to tell his story, but the repetitions are full of tiny tweaks and twists that keep readers guessing (and sometimes giggling) and propel the story to its cozy; satisfying end.
—BookPage

There's an early cinema flavor to this period charmer that eventually grants the wishes of the Wisches (and their new dog); each page could almost be a captioned silent movie scene as the tightly structured and neatly intertwined plot unfurls...The carefully repetitive text will also make this an engaging readaloud, but be sure to keep your audience close to see the show unfold in the art.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

The story builds in four acts, with slight intentional repetition ("The next morning, as the sun rose over Bloomville...") but with new events and information thrown in, much like additional juggling balls being tossed into the air...Cecil's oval-shaped, duotone illustrations (rendered in oil) float amidst white space, the design offering equal weight to both text and image. Illustrations accompany as well as enhance plot
—Horn Book

This quiet, satisfying tale with its old-fashioned setting is sure to enthrall readers of many ages as they reexamine the detailed illustrations. Best for one-on-one and small group sharing.
—School Library Journal

The sweet coincidence of a hopeful dog, a resourceful girl and an anxious juggler plays out in the pages of "Lucy," a light and delicious illustrated tale for 5- to 8-year-olds...This elegant book is so infused with serendipity that what's really a foregone conclusion nonetheless feels, at the end, like a happy surprise.
—The Wall Street Journal

Bloomville is a place many readers will be happy to have visited—and wish to revisit again. It's [a] kinder, gentler, altogether more charming world than our own, and its citizens will entertain.
—New York Journal of Books

The lovely interplay of words and art contributes to a unique package — dear and droll, steady and sure, classic and cinematic.
—San Francisco Chronicle

Delightful, gentle and clever in both text and marvelous black-and-white illustrations on every page, "Lucy" is a special book on multiple levels.
—Reading Eagle (syndicated from Kendal Rautzhan)

Lucy is unlike any other picture book you'll see this year. A breath of fresh air.
—Kirkus Reviews (blog)