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    Roger Mello’s You Can’t Be Too Careful is visually arresting

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    By Jessica on June 21, 2017 ages 5 & up, picture books
    you-cant-be-too-carefulYOU CAN’T BE TOO CAREFUL! by Roger Mello and translated by Daniel Hahn, Elsewhere Editions, April 4, 2017, Hardcover, $18 (ages 5-8)

    There’s nothing conventional about Roger Mello’s You Can’t Be Too Careful! From the stylized illustrations to the abstract narrative, this book is primed to take readers to far off worlds.

    You Can’t Be Too Careful! opens in a garden where White Rose is being closely guarded by the gardener… just in case she might escape. As the story unfolds, we learn that gardener once caught a cold while walking barefoot. He was trying to find his shoes, but the cat had hidden them. The cat was a gift from the gardener’s younger brother whose wife, Dalva. Dalva had inherited the feline from her uncle who died of a broken heart.

    That’s not the whole of You Can’t Be Too Careful! In fact, it’s just the beginning, with each small action triggering another, until they come full circle.

    you-cant-be-too-carefulYou Can’t Be Too Careful! is a study of the interconnectedness of life, and it does so in spectacular fashion. Roger Mello’s illustrations are a combination of complex colored-pencil drawings and torn paper, creating otherworldly spreads that immediately pull you in. Each illustration is perfectly paired with just enough text to prime your imagination.

    At first glance, You Can’t Be Too Careful! appears too sophisticated for young readers. That’s why it works. Mello captures the untapped creativity of children, filtering only within the confines of the page. In this way Mello is celebrating the ingenuity and sophistication of even the youngest of readers.

    you-cant-be-too-careful

    © 2017, Cracking the Cover. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise noted, all books — digital and physical — have been provided for free by publishers in exchange for honest and unbiased reviews. All thoughts and opinions are those of the reviewer.

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    Jessica
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    Jessica Harrison is the main reviewer behind Cracking the Cover. Prior to creating Cracking the Cover, Jessica worked as the in-house book critic for the Deseret News, a daily newspaper in Salt Lake City. Jessica also worked as a copy editor and general features writer for the paper. Following that, Jessica spent two years with an international company as a social media specialist. She is currently a freelance writer/editor. She is passionate about reading and giving people the tools to make informed decisions in their own book choices.

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