Review by Booklist Review
In her new home, the vaguely dystopian Gray City, Robin's colorful personality and yellow raincoat stand out. In detention for drawing a colorful picture in art class, she makes a new friend named Alani who loves color as much as she does. Robin eventually meets colorful musicians who play in secret and comes across a hidden library of colorful books, including one that explains the relationship between light and color. Using this knowledge, she and Alani sneak into the Gray Works factory and manage to restore color to the city. The story works as an allegory in which the pervasive grayness stands for (in the words of the black-and-white video that plays in detention) conformity, obedience, and discipline. The gray surroundings are properly overwhelming and make any splashes of color pop. Although this is printed in a traditional picture-book format, its chapter breaks, page-long chunks of unbroken text, and more abstract themes make it appropriate for late-elementary-age readers. In many ways, the story feels familiar, but the illustrations make it special. A visually striking allegory for independent readers.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In this extended illustrated narrative, creator Kuhlmann (the Mouse Adventures series) paints a dystopian city whose buildings, vehicles, and murky sky are shades of the same steely gray. After young Robin moves there with her father, she ventures into her new classroom wearing a yellow rain slicker in protest of the ubiquitous monochrome. She draws a picture in color and is sent to an auditorium for detention, where she befriends another secret color-lover, Alani. The boy turns out to live in her building, where he plays music with his uncle ("This sort of thing is very rare"). When Robin becomes convinced that the authorities are using gray to conceal the city's colors, she persuades Alani and others to help her break into the massive, heavily guarded factory that is the hue's source. In a dramatic action sequence, Robin sabotages the Gray Works, and the story comes to a brisk and cheerful end. Alongside an allegory about opposing widespread conformity, striking, film-still-style spreads offer visual sweep and imaginative detail. Characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Endnotes include information about light refraction and color-mixing. Ages 6--10. (Sept.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
In this Swiss import, translated from German, rudimentary color science and a few good friends help the new girl in town end a plague of grayness. Robin--light-skinned and apparently preadolescent--stares at her new town and realizes that it's devoid of color. In protest, Robin decides to wear her yellow raincoat everywhere. On her first day of school, that decision lands her in detention, where she meets brown-skinned Alani. They quickly become friends and resolve to resist the status quo. Robin encounters adult resisters who play music--outlawed along with color--and is menaced by a man all in gray. A fearful librarian loans Robin a book about color, inspiring a plan to transform the Gray City for the better. Robin, Alani, and the alienated musicians decide to sabotage a factory responsible for rendering everything gray. Oddly, as color returns, the children receive only a minimal reprimand from the factory managers, and not one citizen counter-protests. Relying more on telling than showing, the extremely short chapters are full of adverbs and awkward turns of phrase--perhaps because of translation issues. Nevertheless, suspense builds with each new scene--and, importantly, readers are treated to outstanding, detailed watercolor illustrations. Despite the somewhat clumsy prose, this story might work as a read-aloud in elementary or middle school classes that are being introduced to color theory; it could also spur conversation about conformity and societal norms. A discussion starter for readers who can look past the clunky writing. (additional facts about colors)(Fiction. 8-11) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
