I Wish Book Review

I Wish
Written by Toon Tellegen
Illustrated by Ingrid Godon
Translated from the Dutch by David Colmer
Published March 31, 2020

Mom's Review
I Wish is a large book with a large face taking up a large part of the cover. You flip through it and you see faces. Serious faces. Staring out at you. Not much text.

And then you start to read. It's poetry. Intimate glimpses of reflections. Thoughts you wouldn't share with anyone. And it feels very real, though the portraits are not realistic. They are grave. And each poem is raw.

T liked it. I did too. It left me wondering about the people. Are they real? Did the author speak with any? From the preface, we know that he muses about internal thoughts of passersby.  T said that he didn't know everything, but that he was okay with that – he didn't have questions. But I do. I Wish is different. It stays with you. It makes you think. About the depths of others. The fears. The dreams.

We will read it again. And again. And again. And keep thinking. Keep discussing. Keep wondering.

Son's Review
(Age: 5)

Mom: Did you like I Wish?

Son: I did. The faces looked rather fat. That was very funny. You should know that it has a lot of feelings in it. And if I wanted to meet anyone, the person would be Fred.

Mom: What was your favorite wish?

Arms crossed with red lines in them.

Mom: Why?

Son: I don't know why, but all I know is that's my favorite wish of all of them.

Mom: When is it a good time to read I Wish?

Son: In March. In April. In June. In Halloween. In Christmas. And at Easter.

Mom: Why?

Son: Because those are my favorite times to read books.

Mom: Who might like I Wish?

Son: Anybody who likes wishing.

Mom: What's the most important thing to know about I Wish?

Son: That it has a lot of wishes in it. Brain wishes. Wishes that come from your brain.

Mom: What does this book make you think about?

Son: The one wish that distracts me from everything I like doing.

Mom: What do you think the author wants us to think about?

Son: What we wish.

Mom: Why is it good to think about wishes?

Son: That wishes come from your brain and wishes are the worst thing in the world because wishes distract me from anything I want to do.

Mom: What else do you want to say in this review?

Son: The book is really good, people. You should really like it.

Extra:
I cannot recommend Elsewhere Editions highly enough. They are the children's arm of Archipelago Books and publish a select few translations each year. If you are looking for a treasure, browse their catalog. https://elsewhereeditions.org/books/i-wish/

Note: A review copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.