The depth of the lake and the height of the sky /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

'Astonishing to behold.' --The New York Times

It's summertime and a boy and his dog are leaving behind their apartment in the busy city.

His grandparents' home in the countryside feels like a different world. From the window, the curious boy sees a path leading enticingly into the forest. He can't wait to explore.

At each bend in the trail the boy discovers more wonders of the surrounding natural world, from towering trees to a still, silent lake. He can't resist diving down, down into the cool water and greeting the fish below. Then later, when boy and dog have been warmed by the gentle sunshine, they wander back, contentedly, to their family. But before they go to sleep, nature gives them one last dazzling show: they look up, up to a night sky awash with stars.

Without a word, The Depth of the Lake and the Height of the Sky tells the heartfelt and uplifting story of a child's independent discovery of the natural world. Kim Jihyun cleverly captures excitement, wonder and joy in intricate illustrations using a deceptively simple color palate.

This is a beautiful wordless story about allowing ourselves to be present in the moment and see the world afresh.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

School Library Journal Review

PreS-Gr 1--A wordless picture book pays homage to the wonder of nature. The story opens with a boy playing on his bedroom floor, his desk and walls full of artwork. The boy, his parents, and dog leave the city cramped by buildings for the sparse countryside. After they reach the grandparents' home, the boy and his dog go down a path that leads to a lake. It is a quiet story without drama. Rather, the book is a call to pause, slow down, and enjoy nature. The illustrator used writing ink to draw and paint, and each spread is a masterpiece. In one scene, the clouds above the car are so detailed and clear that they look more like a photograph than a sketch. While many of the illustrations are a view of the boy from the side or behind, the most striking pictures are from the boy's perspective. For example, one scene shows the boy sprawled on the pier looking up; the next spread is the sun shining down. Another illustration depicts the boy and his dog gazing upwards. That is followed by the starry night sky, framed by treetops. VERDICT This may take some book-talking to engage children in such a slow meditative piece, but surely it will spark discussion and appreciation of nature afterwards. Leisurely and lovely.--Elissa Cooper

Booklist Review

Wordlessly evoking wonder and an appreciation for nature is no easy feat, but in Jihyun's debut, the feelings of a young boy are effortlessly portrayed, with subtle shifts in tone and color opening up vistas of the titular lake and sky. The narrative follows the child on a summer trip from the city where he lives to a cottage in the countryside. A palette of grays reveals blue undertones in the boy's bedroom, the cityscape, and even the cottage, as the pages abound with eye-catching details: a toy car that looks like the family sedan, a dog playing with a ball and poking his head out the car window, family photos on the cottage wall. The road to the countryside forks as it crosses a blue river, signaling what lies ahead, and a path at the cottage bends until it ends at a lake where soft circles of blue beckon the boy to dive in. Under the water, the blues deepen, and fish and fronds reveal themselves below. Boy and dog return to the cottage as night darkens the sky into a swirling vista of stars mimicking the currents of the lake. Both boy and dog look up, entranced. This book of quiet beauty invites children to notice how depth and height can be similar. A stellar addition for all libraries.

Horn Book Review

This wordless picture book about a city child visiting the country pays tribute to the wonders of the natural world. The cinematic illustrations begin on the front endpapers with an overhead view of a busy city. After the title page, we see a child and a dog playing on the floor of a cozy bedroom while the adults prepare for a trip. Zooming out once again, we follow the family's car as it travels out of the city and into the countryside, where the family is welcomed to a small cottage by an older couple. There the adventure truly begins, as the child explores a forest path, encounters giant ferns, swims to the bottom of a clear pond to greet fish among the kelp, sunbathes on a dock, and finally returns to the cottage to eat dinner and gaze at the stars. The illustrations were "entirely drawn and painted using writing ink and slow-dry blending medium," resulting in a dreamy gray, white, and blue palette that complements the tranquil tone. The lack of text adds to the sense of reverence; a brief author's note explains the inspiration for the story. Vivid facial expressions and body language tell the viewer all we need to know about the child's inner life, while the beauty of the landscape speaks for itself. K Rachael Stein May/June 2022 p.124(c) Copyright 2022. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Kirkus Book Review

A wordless ode to the serenity of breathing deep in nature. A child with pale skin, dark hair, and Asian-presenting features plays with toys in an apartment in a bustling city. Soon the child and their parents are driving to visit relatives in the country. Tall trees replace skyscrapers, and grass replaces pavement. Mesmerized first by family photos on the living room wall and then by the lush outdoors, the child wanders down shady paths, accompanied by their equally curious dog. Arriving at a vast lake, the child dives in and finds a submerged world, with waving plants and fish that seem to beckon. This watery space is serene like the countryside above, and the child revels in it before surfacing to lie on the sunny dock. Later, the child and the dog gaze at the starry sky, inviting readers to do the same. Kim's mostly monochromatic illustrations nevertheless vary in line weight and texture, bringing to life the protagonist's verdant surroundings and perfectly capturing the transformation from city child to a wilder one. Shifting perspectives vary between close-ups of the child's wondrous expressions and their tiny form amid a dense forest, an expansive lake, and a luminous night sky. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A simple yet marvelous musing on the beauty of the great outdoors. (poem by the author) (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Kim Jihyun is an illustrator and picture book creator from South Korea. Jihyun studied Design and Illustration at the University of Brighton, UK, and Seoul National University, South Korea. Her first picture book, The Depth of the Lake and the Height of the Sky, evokes the feeling of being surrounded by the vast natural world; a stark contrast to her life in a busy city. Jihyun lives in Seoul with her partner and their young daughter.