When No One is Watching by Eileen Spinelli and illustrated by David A. Johnson (Eeerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2013) is about a girl who loves to be crazy (dancing, singing, grunting disapproval, and so forth) but only when no one is watching. If she’s around others, she is quite and sullen. She’s withdrawn and unhappy. At the end, we find that she likes it this way.
Her best friend is the same way, and when they are together, they can be crazy together. I am a true introvert myself, although I can appreciate being around others, so I really related to this book. I was the same way as a kid.
I love how the illustrations give her a sense of action on the “alone” pages: she appears in a few different poses, as she dances for example, so we can see just how much she is a part of things. On the “everyone’s watching” page, however, she sits in one place and others all appear dull and uninteresting. The illustrations really capture the feelings I remember from being a shy girl just bottling up my desire to dance.
I’m so pleased that her ultimate resolution is so satisfying: that she can find her place with her friend. That is what I’ve found in my life too. Nothing is better than a friend.
Mama’s Note: Friday nights are “fun night” for our family. Usually, this means we watch a family/kid friendly movie. Recently, now that my son is five, we’re branching out to board games. (When the favorite board game was Candy Land, I really did not like that option every week.) Today, my requested that instead, we read books together.
Yes, my five-year-old son wanted to spend an hour and a half reading with me. This is why I did my 1000 books project with him, and why I’m doing it all over again with my baby. Reading together as a family truly is fun. I’ve grown my son into what I am certain will be a lifelong reader.
