A little girl grows up to be an accomplished artist in this sumptuously illustrated book about the small things that lead to a rich and fulfilling life.
All you need
Is a planet to live on,
A sun to give you light,
And warmth. . .
In All You Need, poet Howard Schwartz’s graceful, deceptively simple text describes a handful of things anyone needs to live a rich and fulfilling life, made all the more potent by the illustrations of debut picture book artist Jasu Hu, who uses her talents to create a rich and powerful narrative describing her own journey, creative and otherwise, from a childhood in China to her arrival to study art in New York. Ultimately, she creates her own book, this book, a gift to her distant parents.
Thanks to Sharon, my friend who is translating this book into several languages, for reading her copy of the book to me this afternoon before she left town to visit her grandchildren.
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Addendum (June 13, 2022): When I had a chance to study the illustrations, I saw a swallow on nearly every page that I had not noticed on that cursory* first reading. The "Note from the Artist" on the last page says:
"In Chinese culture, the swallow is a messenger that brings happiness and is a symbol of homecoming."
When travel restrictions because of Covid-19 kept the artist from coming home to the United States in 2020, she was able instead to visit her parents in Nanjing, which she says "became a real homecoming."
*Word of the Day
cur·so·ry /ˈkərs(ə)rē/ adjective = hasty and therefore not thorough or detailed.
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