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zusy's review
5.0
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!! Beautiful language, beautiful illustrations. We fell in love. And discovered lots of nautical and sewing terms we were clueless about.
barefootsong's review
5.0
From the opening lines (“A slim schooner of a woman, driven by strong winds and a broken heart, floundered barefoot across the eastern plains until arriving at the edge of a village”), the reader is drawn into a curiously juxtaposed world in which nautical terms are used to describe a prairie setting. It is a juxtaposition that works, thanks to the combination of Armstrong’s lyrical text and GrandPré’s dreamy illustrations. The sea and sewing provide a metaphor for imagination, richly developed in Armstrong’s choice of words. Adjectives and nouns give the text a maritime flavor, but it is the use of nautical verbs at every opportunity (“The plains around them swallowed color and drowned it, and the village itself drifted sadly, a sunless island”) that truly brings the metaphor to life. GrandPré’s illustrations portray equally well the drab life of the prairie folks and their subsequent transformation through the stories unfolding inside their pockets, a transformation made magical by GrandPré’s swirling colors and shining visions. Pockets is a beautiful addition to any collection, sure to inspire hope and dreams.
melaniegaum's review
2.0
I would have liked more details on the woman's previous life, but I guess it was supposed to be vague. There also were so many terms I wasn't familiar with and felt the need to look up, which severely slowed down my reading pace.
erine's review
I didn’t care for the text of this book very much, but thought the illustrations were truly superb. The idea and message behind the story were enjoyable, but the nautical metaphors were heavy-handed and the text was lengthy and dense. A lost seamstress washes up in a lonely, dull village. She agrees to make only plain clothing for the villagers in return for charity, but she can’t suppress her creativity and imagination for long. Her outlet is the pockets she puts in each garment, heavily embroidered and decorated. These pockets become windows to the world for the villagers.
The illustrations by Mary GrandPre lightened up the heavy story. As with Sweep Dreams, the pictures have clear, bold shapes that are round and rich. For this story, she uses line to create the illusion of embroidery. The color is bold here, too; rich jewel tones throughout the illustrations get brighter as the villagers lose their dull thoughts and broaden their horizons. GrandPre’s use of value adds a depth to her illustrations, as certain parts of each picture pop out of darkness. The illustrations fill the pages and flow effortlessly around the text blocks: this book is more successful than Sweep Dreams in layering the text over the illustrations. GrandPre continues to use perspective well, zooming in on the changing faces of the villagers, zooming out to show the village as a whole, and just in general creates beautiful artwork to tell this story. It’s a shame the words don’t match the illustrations.
The illustrations by Mary GrandPre lightened up the heavy story. As with Sweep Dreams, the pictures have clear, bold shapes that are round and rich. For this story, she uses line to create the illusion of embroidery. The color is bold here, too; rich jewel tones throughout the illustrations get brighter as the villagers lose their dull thoughts and broaden their horizons. GrandPre’s use of value adds a depth to her illustrations, as certain parts of each picture pop out of darkness. The illustrations fill the pages and flow effortlessly around the text blocks: this book is more successful than Sweep Dreams in layering the text over the illustrations. GrandPre continues to use perspective well, zooming in on the changing faces of the villagers, zooming out to show the village as a whole, and just in general creates beautiful artwork to tell this story. It’s a shame the words don’t match the illustrations.
heypretty52's review
4.0
Armstrong weaves a beautiful story of everyday magic and inspiration. Coupled with Grand Pre's phenomenal illustrations, this has quickly become one of my favourite picture books!
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