At the same moment that Jodie’s baby brother takes his first step, a city’s worth of moments unfold in a masterful picture book from Bob Graham.
At 9:59 on a Thursday morning, Jodie draws a duck. As her pen hovers in the air, ready to add a silver button to the duck’s boot, her little brother Jonathan pushes to his feet, sways, and takes his first step. At the exact same moment, their mom plays a pennywhistle in the kitchen, a man buys fresh bread at the bakery, a baby is born, a soldier says good-bye to his mom, a granddad and granddaughter play with leaves in the park, a blackbird finds a worm. . . . From an ordinary scene of an apartment strewn with child’s artwork and toys to a bird’s-eye view of a city morning pulsing with life, Bob Graham celebrates a whole world-vision in a single moment, encouraging readers to stop, observe, and savor the world around them.
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
A lot happens in just one minute
By Library Media Specialist
In THE SILVER BUTTON by Bob Graham the reader is given an opportunity to provide a teachable moment to a child. The city is bigger than the drawing of a button on a picture by a little girl. A whole world of events is happening at that same point in time. I love the concept of the story. I love that the author makes the connection between what is happening in my moment of time with things happening throughout the city. Although the magnitude of the concept is likely beyond the comprehension of a 4-to-6-year-old, little ones will enjoy learning about and sharing in the experiences of other people. The one shortcoming, if I may call it that, is that the watercolor pictures are so faded that it is difficult to identify some parts of the scenery. Typically, for this age group, I lean toward bright vibrant colors like those found in April and Esme Tooth Fairies by the same author.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
the more we read it, the more i love it
By M. Davidson
I wasn't crazy about the idea of this book, but thought the pictures were engaging and needed some longer bedtime books because the board books we have weren't cutting it... But I have fallen in love!! The detail, the variety, it is just a great little book about how complex life is even when it can be so simple... The detail in the illustrations is so neat!
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.This book reads like a poem, quite a good poem!
By Deborah Sandford
Spoiler alert--! Read the book and look at the pictures first before reading this review!Jodie’s brother Jonathan is taking his first step. That alone will capture the attention of the picture book audience it is intended for. Each successive page, beginning with Jodie coloring a picture of a duck in top hat and tails, continues with a series of vignettes of words and exquisitely detailed pastel illustrations that draw the reader in to a slice of life in the town and at the moment Jonathan takes his first step.‘“Mommy! Jonathan’s just taken his first step!” as she puts the last silver button on her duck’s boots.’Oh. We’ve forgotten all about the silver button, the raison d'etre for the title of the book! Huh.Close the book; look at the cover. Look for the silver button.Poem.
