Up and Down by Oliver Jeffers

This story captured my heart through the vibrant illustrations and heartwarming story. This is the fourth book by Oliver Jeffers with these characters. The story is about a boy and his penguin friend. They are best friends, and do everything together. One day, the penguin feels like there is something he needs to do: fly. They set out together to try to help penguin accomplish his goal.

The boy and the penguin start trying different ways to get the penguin to fly. He jumps off tall furniture, ties a balloon around his body, and even goes to the zoo to talk to the other animals to find help. Nothing works though, and he still wants to fly. This is when the penguin makes a drastic decision; go to the circus an shoot himself out of the giant cannon! He doesn't tell the boy, he just goes off on his own.

After a while, the boy can't find the penguin, and is worried. The penguin is about to go into the cannon, and he really misses the boy. Luckily, the boy realizes where his friend is and goes to find him--just as he is flying through the air.  He is there to catch him, and they are reunited. In the end, the penguin decides he doesn't like flying, and is happy with his life as it is. The boy and the penguin head home to play their favorite game.

This is a lovely story for young children. It has simple yet delightful pictures, and it is a story about friendship. It is the type of story that can be interpreted different ways by different readers. My interpretation is that good friends will be by your side no matter what. Also, it is good to follow your heart and your dreams, but sometimes things don't turn out how you thought they would, and that is ok. I would recommend this book to early readers and young children, it is a great early literacy book for any classroom or home library.

--Jana Kania, ERDL 524