The Only Child

Author Guojing
Illustrated by Guojing
Ebook
On sale Dec 01, 2015 | 112 Pages | 9780553497069
Grades K-4
Reading Level: Lexile NP | Fountas & Pinnell WB

A gorgeous, deeply felt story of one girl’s journey through loneliness, magnificently illustrated and hailed as “an expansive and ageless book full of wonder, sadness, and wild bursts of imagination” (USA Today)

“A dreamy, wordless debut.”—The New York Times

A KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST MIDDLE GRADE BOOK OF THE CENTURY • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, Publishers Weekly

Part picture book, part graphic novel, The Only Child tells the story of a little girl following a mysterious stag deep into the woods. Lost and alone—like Alice down the rabbit hole—she quickly finds herself in a strange and wondrous world. But with home and her family so far away, how will she get back to where she came from?

Wordless and deeply moving, with expressive and dreamlike illustrations by renowned author and concept artist Guojing, The Only Child brilliantly captures the rich, emotional life of a child, filled with longing, love, and joy.
Guojing is a renowned author, illustrator, and concept artist from China. Her debut picture book The Only Child was a New York Times Best Illustrated book and a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Children’s Book. Her wordless picture book Stormy: A Story About Finding a Forever Home was an ALA Notable Children’s Book and was called “masterful” by The New York Times. Her graphic novel, The Flamingo, garnered multiple starred reviews and was named a Best Book of the Year by NPR. Guojing lives in Canada with her husband and son. View titles by Guojing
  • SELECTION | 2016
    Capitol Choices Noteworthy Book for Children's and Teens
  • SELECTION | 2016
    Notable Children's Books
  • AWARD | 2015
    New York Times Best Illustrated Book
"A gorgeous, quiet book, deserving of multiple reads." —Gene Yang, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, author of American Born Chinese, winner of the Michael L. Printz Award

"A beautifully drawn adventure that slips effortlessly between dream and memory, as if these two worlds are actually one and the same: that distant place where the heart and mind must always travel before returning home, to know what it means to be lonely before knowing what it means to be loved." —Shaun Tan, creator of The Arrival and The Lost Thing

"The Only Child evocatively, and without a single word, reminds us that we all are hopelessly lost and then joyously found, again and again, throughout our lives." —Marla Frazee, two-time Caldecott Honor winner for All the World and A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever

"Guojing's luminous pencil drawings create a world of such sensory presence that now I know what it feels like to run my hand across the snout of a great stag, swing by an antler onto its back and soar through the air; or to watch in awe as a giant sky-whale dives down into a sea of clouds. A wonderfully dizzying journey." —Paul O. Zelinsky, Caldecott Medalist for Rapunzel, and three-time Caldecott Honor recipient for Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, and Swamp Angel

“Rare is the book containing great emotional depth that truly resonates across a span of ages: this is one such.” —Kirkus Reviews, Starred

“Fine draftsmanship, deft pacing, and striking imaginative power distinguish this debut.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred

“Each arresting, softly penciled panel is surprisingly luminous in spite of its monochromatic palette, and in those gentle scenes, Guojing evokes a wide range of feeling, especially the lonesomeness of the little girl, who never quite seems at ease alone. Reminiscent of Raymond Briggs’ classic, The Snowman (1978), this is quiet, moving, playful, and bittersweet all at once.” —Booklist, Starred 

"In Guojing's beautiful, wordless storybook, a little Chinese girl left home alone wanders off into the snow and has magical cloud adventures with a benevolent stag." —Shelf Awareness, Starred

About

A gorgeous, deeply felt story of one girl’s journey through loneliness, magnificently illustrated and hailed as “an expansive and ageless book full of wonder, sadness, and wild bursts of imagination” (USA Today)

“A dreamy, wordless debut.”—The New York Times

A KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST MIDDLE GRADE BOOK OF THE CENTURY • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, Publishers Weekly

Part picture book, part graphic novel, The Only Child tells the story of a little girl following a mysterious stag deep into the woods. Lost and alone—like Alice down the rabbit hole—she quickly finds herself in a strange and wondrous world. But with home and her family so far away, how will she get back to where she came from?

Wordless and deeply moving, with expressive and dreamlike illustrations by renowned author and concept artist Guojing, The Only Child brilliantly captures the rich, emotional life of a child, filled with longing, love, and joy.

Author

Guojing is a renowned author, illustrator, and concept artist from China. Her debut picture book The Only Child was a New York Times Best Illustrated book and a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Children’s Book. Her wordless picture book Stormy: A Story About Finding a Forever Home was an ALA Notable Children’s Book and was called “masterful” by The New York Times. Her graphic novel, The Flamingo, garnered multiple starred reviews and was named a Best Book of the Year by NPR. Guojing lives in Canada with her husband and son. View titles by Guojing

Awards

  • SELECTION | 2016
    Capitol Choices Noteworthy Book for Children's and Teens
  • SELECTION | 2016
    Notable Children's Books
  • AWARD | 2015
    New York Times Best Illustrated Book

Praise

"A gorgeous, quiet book, deserving of multiple reads." —Gene Yang, National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, author of American Born Chinese, winner of the Michael L. Printz Award

"A beautifully drawn adventure that slips effortlessly between dream and memory, as if these two worlds are actually one and the same: that distant place where the heart and mind must always travel before returning home, to know what it means to be lonely before knowing what it means to be loved." —Shaun Tan, creator of The Arrival and The Lost Thing

"The Only Child evocatively, and without a single word, reminds us that we all are hopelessly lost and then joyously found, again and again, throughout our lives." —Marla Frazee, two-time Caldecott Honor winner for All the World and A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever

"Guojing's luminous pencil drawings create a world of such sensory presence that now I know what it feels like to run my hand across the snout of a great stag, swing by an antler onto its back and soar through the air; or to watch in awe as a giant sky-whale dives down into a sea of clouds. A wonderfully dizzying journey." —Paul O. Zelinsky, Caldecott Medalist for Rapunzel, and three-time Caldecott Honor recipient for Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, and Swamp Angel

“Rare is the book containing great emotional depth that truly resonates across a span of ages: this is one such.” —Kirkus Reviews, Starred

“Fine draftsmanship, deft pacing, and striking imaginative power distinguish this debut.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred

“Each arresting, softly penciled panel is surprisingly luminous in spite of its monochromatic palette, and in those gentle scenes, Guojing evokes a wide range of feeling, especially the lonesomeness of the little girl, who never quite seems at ease alone. Reminiscent of Raymond Briggs’ classic, The Snowman (1978), this is quiet, moving, playful, and bittersweet all at once.” —Booklist, Starred 

"In Guojing's beautiful, wordless storybook, a little Chinese girl left home alone wanders off into the snow and has magical cloud adventures with a benevolent stag." —Shelf Awareness, Starred