As Time Went By

In a tale written in three parts, Colombian illustrator Sanabria tells the story of a group of homeless people who find a wonderfully unexpected place to live. In the first section, he traces the downward slide of a once-majestic ocean liner that “sailed beside the sun.” Ladies with bustles and parasols who walk the deck are replaced by cargo and fishing nets before the ship is abandoned, the palette fading from rich color to dreary browns. Next, Sanabria introduces a wealthy family whose fortunes change; they are forced into drearier neighborhoods until eventually being pushed to the harbor with other luckless residents, the colors fading page by page here, too. In the final section, the people climb rope ladders up to the deck of the ship and haul their furniture aboard. A man “who had loved the sea since he was a boy” helps them rebuild, and the ship sails again. The triumph isn’t shown in the tone, which stays restrained, but in the colors, which reappear in confetti and flowers. Objects don’t stay precious forever, Sanabria’s story shows, but human lives do. Ages 4–8. (May)