cover image Across Town

Across Town

Sara. Orchard Books (NY), $13.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-531-05932-6

A mysterious, faceless stranger, clad in a battered trenchcoat and fedora, slips through a city in the dark of night. Suddenly, he is confronted by a pair of glowing eyes. In this wordless picture book with its stark black jacket, appearances are indeed deceiving--for at this point the book's menacing mood dissolves. The glowing eyes belong to a cat, and as the stranger bends down to stroke it, and then carries it lovingly away, readers are left with the reassuring image of two strays who have found each other. Rendered in black, beige and white, Sara's torn-paper illustrations are striking, but this seems a very thin concept on which to hang an entire picture book. Though children may not request repeated viewings, this work could certainly spark stimulating discussions. Ages 3-7. (Mar.)