The Tunnel - Softcover

Anthony Browne

3.92

1,335 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0744552397 ISBN 13: 9780744552393

Publisher: Walker Books Ltd, 1997

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Scornful of his younger sister's fears, a young boy decides to explore a tunnel forcing her to go after him when he doesn't return.

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About the Author:

Anthony Browne is one of the most popular and stylistically distinctive children's book artists with a number of outstanding titles to his credit. Gorilla was the winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal and the Kurt Maschler Award. Other titles include four books featuring Willy the lovable chimp: Willy the Wimp (9780744543636); Willy the Champ (9780744543568); Willy the Dreamer (9780744569643) and Willy's Pictures (9780744582406) as well as the picture books Into the Forest (9781844285594) and Silly Billy (9781406305760). In 2000, Anthony received the highest international honour for illustration, the Hans Christian Andersen Award, for his services to children's literature - the first British illustrator to win the prize since 1956.

From School Library Journal:

Kindergarten-Grade 3-- One day, while playing in an empty lot, Jack discovers a mysterious tunnel and fearlessly goes exploring. When he fails to return, his sister, Rose, who is characterized as a "wimp," reluctantly and fearfully sets out to find him. Rose, who "stayed inside on her own, reading and dreaming" finds that the tunnel leads to a wood that grows increasingly forbidding as massive tree trunks take on weird and sinister shapes. Despite her mounting fear, though, she continues her search, finding Jack at last, magically turned to stone. Weeping, she hugs him and her tears return him to life. If this sounds cliched, it is. The text is flat, the story skimpy and without depth. The Tunnel lacks not only the wit and freshness of the author's Willy the Wimp and Gorilla (both Knopf, 1985), but it starts on a distressingly sexist note as well. Rose's bravery at the end is somehow not enough to remove the stereotyped characterization. The illustrations, on the other hand, are technically superb, and have great dramatic impact. The double spread of Browne's surreal wood is most effective, and gives readers lots to look at and think about (especially the image of Red Riding Hood's wolf, first seen in a picture over Rose's bed). Browne's arresting and psychologically intense illustrations offer far more excitement and meaning than his anemic text. --Linda Boyles, Alachua County Library District, Gainesville, FL
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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