The Plan words by Alison Paul, pictures by Barbara Lehman
The blurb for The Plan, written by Alison Paul and illustrated by Barbara Lehman, reads, "Letter by letter, twenty words shift and change to reveal one family's adventure. After all, the difference between a dream and reality is . . . a plan." Lehman has written and illustrated five picture books of her own, all of which are magical, wordless, circular journeys. Although Lehman didn't write The Plan, Paul's text meshes seamlessly with her storytelling and illustration style. A young girl, her go in tow, has a plan to build a plane and fly it to saturn. Over the course of the story and the twenty words, we learn about May's life on the farm with her father, his past with her mother and why there is a bi-plane in the back forty.
Like Lehman's stories, Paul brings The Plan back to the beginning of the story, ending with the word "plan." Lehman's gorgeous watercolor illustrations are outlined in black, making them pop off the page. As one review noted so well, The Plan "blends a sense of rootedness with the spirit of exploration - a rare combination." The Plan, seemingly simple as it may be, is rich with wonder and detail, imagination, adventure and ingenuity.
Source: Review Copy
