One Potato Review

Deep blue and beguiling, for starters. The boy in this story is the same as the one in Jeffers’ The Way Back Home, he never seems to smile (in fact, he doesn’t really have a mouth except when he gets excited, which is rare) and he’s conspicuously small in the vast, lonely world, which he is nevertheless able to negotiate with a paddle boat, a map, and impressive equanimity. This is to return a penguin, by the way, who happens to show up at his door. The destination is the North Pole, and the epic expanses of ocean – whether placid or roiling or scattered with ice – contribute to a story so peacefully, effortlessly charming you’re even tempted to be a little skeptical in the end. But forget it, because who can resist the spectacle of penguin floating around in an upside-down umbrella? The little surge of emotion at the end feels finally too earned not to share.