Hello Lighthouse
Hello Lighthouse
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Hello Lighthouse, by Sophie Blackall, won the 2019 Caldecott Medal for its illustrations. Hello Lighthouse is the story of a lighthouse keeper who lives on a secluded island. We read as he leaves for his first trip out to relieve the previous keeper and as he adjusts to his new life. He keeps busy with daily chores. This book follows the keeper through important moments in his life in the lighthouse, until he eventually moves his family on land.
Full Book Reading:
Illustration close looks:
This illustration is found in the beginning of the book. It shows the interior of the lighthouse by cutting it in half. Seeing the inside of the lighthouse in the beginning of the book sets the scene for the book. It shows all of the different rooms, floors and the layout of the lighthouse interior. This illustration stood out to me because it was very interesting how Sophie Blackall chooses to show the overview of the lighthouse from the outside. I also noticed how the book is vertical instead of horizontal to stress the height of the lighthouse.
In this illustration, Sophie Blackall uses many lines in a swirling motion to emphasize the wind. The dialogue on this page says "The wind takes a deep breath and blows and blows". This addition to the image highlights how strong the wind is, as on the previous page the keeper emphasized the whistling of the wind and how he is always listening to it.
The bright colors on this page emphasize the pale colors of the lighthouse keepers, showing how sick he is. The keepers wife and the table, along with the rest of the room and his color is gray. On the page next to it, the spiral stairs again alludes to the fact of how tall the lighthouse is. Finally the words on the page are spaced out when it says "everywhere" and goes up on different lines when saying "up and down".
In this illustration the dark sky for a background emphasizes how bright the lighthouse is. The contrast between the white snow and the dark sky brings out the luminous shine of the light and the bright colors of the house.
Molly Bangs Principle #7
Molly Bangs Principle #7
In principle #7 it is discussed that the reader is comforted by round shapes and curves (Bang, 70). As seen here, many of the shapes are round, such as the circles and even the shapes of the keeper and his wife's bodies.
More illustrations from Hello Lighthouse:
The circle shape of this illustration resembles a clock, showing the time that is passing.
At the end of the book you see the lighthouse keeper looking at his family with the lighthouse in the distance, thus showing a start of a new chapter of his life.
The texture of the waves in this illustration show how the family in the lighthouse lives far into the ocean.
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