Quiet books don’t always need the same structure that other picture books have. Quiet stories are often told without true arcs or without wild swings in the action. Or without any action at all. Sometimes they are just vehicles to explain the way things are, or to express a feeling.
I Know How to Draw an Owl, by Hilary Horder Hiply and illustrated by Matt James is that kind of book. It is a simple story that flows quietly from the start to the end. Like most quiet stories, there are no wild swings in the action, no sitting pin the edge of our seats, just a bit of calm quiet as we accompany the protagonist and learn.
The story opens in a classroom as a teacher is giving an art lesson. She is showing the students how to draw an owl; the body, the head, the beak, the wings, the eyes. She marvels at the owl our protagonist, Belle, has drawn. Especially the wise eyes.
When asked how she made the eyes look so wise, Belle says she doesn’t know. But the truth is she does know how. She just isn’t going to tell anybody because it involves a secret she would rather not share.
Belle and her mother live in a car in their car in a park. We don’t know why they are there, what happened before this that landed them there. And it is not really important to the story. It’s just a quiet acceptance of the way things are. There is an obvious loving relationship and an acceptance between Belle and her mother. We are made to understand that this, having no home, is something Belle keeps to herself.
Every night in the car in the park Belle and her mom hear an owl hooting. Mom says it is there to keep a watch over them. Belle aches to see the owl and one night she actually does. It lands near her and she studies it for the longest time. This is how she was able to draw the wise eyes of the owl in class.
Matt James’ illustrations are big and saturated. They were executed in acrylics on masonite giving them a fluid appearance and wonderful texture of brush strokes. The palette is predominately dark with blues and blacks. This provides an authentic look at what the park at night from a car must look/feel like. Both magical and a little frightening.
The images from within the school are warm and painterly. The other students and teacher are engaging and the owl is both noble and haunting.
This is not a book about homelessness, rather a book about absorbing the life you have, acceptance of your situation, and recognizing where you can help.
