Find the Sun

Visual appeal marks Harkness’s meandering metaphorical epic, in which a search for the sun helps a child beat the Monday blues. After worriedly awakening and wishing that the day “might forget he was here,” Eddie, who’s depicted with light brown skin, curls up beneath the covers and is transported into a stormy landscape where his yellow stuffie, Rabbit, invites him on an expedition to find the sun. As the duo adventure forth, glimpsing glimmers while traveling high upon a cloud and then down into a “dark, raging river,” Rabbit reassures at every turn. When the two eventually journey through a dark cave, they’re rewarded with stars “like a million tiny suns,” and a final obstacle helps Eddie find a sense of internal warmth that helps him to tackle the day. Pencil sketches sculpted in virtual reality create immersive, three-dimensional digital renderings that lend the feel of Claymation to this venturesome picture book that sensitively foregrounds a child’s path to inner strength. Ages 3–6. (May)