The Tea Party in the Woods

As beguilingly surreal as the Mad Hatter's party, with its own enigmatic appeal.

With great delicacy and keen draftsmanship, Japanese artist Miyakoshi weaves fairy-tale elements into a dreamy and sometimes haunting story. In the manner of Little Red Riding Hood, Kikko sets off through the snowy woods to her grandmother's with the pie her father has forgotten; she spies him walking far ahead of her and follows him to a house she's never seen before. In a genuinely spooky scene, she peeps through the window to discover that the man in the hat and overcoat she has followed isn't her father--it's an imposing bear in a three-piece suit. Kikko is ushered into the dining room, where an even more arresting spread reveals a tableful of formally dressed animals--a boar, two stags, the bear, and many more--who gaze at Kikko in wordless surprise. At that moment, the story shifts. "Please, come in and warm yourself," the animals say, greeting her with kindness. In the end, there's a new pie and a parade to Kikko's grandmother's house. The graceful proportions, atmospheric detail, and quiet, bewitching light of Miyakoshi's charcoals distinguish this small gem. Ages 3-7. (Aug.)

K-Gr 2--This work feels new and old, combining motifs from traditional and canonical literature. Elements from "Red Riding Hood" and Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland have the strongest presence with possible nods to "Goldilocks" and the less-known tale of the "Twelve Months." Kikko chases through the woods after her father with a pie for Grandma. Finding herself outside a different house, she joins a tea party. When her animal hosts hear that her pie had been crushed, they assemble an assorted dessert and parade with her to Grandma's house before disappearing. The translated text seems a bit flat and stilted in comparison to the fresh story concept and the pacing tends to lag at times, occasionally pausing on uninspired dialogue. Overall, the illustrations work well in some aspects and fall short in others. With a blend of realism and surrealism, Miyakoshi's style is reminiscent of Anthony Browne. The texture of the charcoal on paper gives the dark trees of the forest a wavery roughness as the author-illustrator artfully creates a barren landscape with the adept use of value, white space, and perspective. Although the stark bleakness makes sense for the outdoor scenes and Miyakoshi's tender grayness fits the real-life frame, the tea party scenes have a static, dusty quality for example, when the animals stare upon the newcomer through what might be described as a dry haze. With the restraint of the monochromatic palette and spot color, the wildly shifting perspective feels unnecessarily dramatic. The greatest disappointment may be that Kikko's minimal facial features occasionally read as inappropriately cross, comical, or smug, suggesting that perhaps more than just words are lost in the translation. VERDICT This is a delightfully unique story with striking illustrations but lacks the magic of a more lyrical translation and comprehensively distinguished visuals.--Erin Reilly-Sanders, Ohio State University, Columbus