CM Magazine: The Liszts.

________________ CM . . . . Volume XXIII Number 4. . . .September 30, 2016

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The Liszts.

Kyo Maclear. Illustrated by Júlia Sardà.
Toronto, ON: Tundra Books, 2016.
40 pp., hc. & epub, $21.99 (hc.).
ISBN 978-1-77049-496-1 (hc.), ISBN 978-1-77049-497-8 (epub).

Grades 1-4 / Ages 6-9.

Review by Ellen Heaney.

**** /4

internal art When I first picked up this book, I thought it was one of an increasing number of picture book biographies and that it would tell me something about composer and pianist Franz Liszt. Instead, it is a wonderful literary joke of a story written by Canadian Kyo Maclear and illustrated by Spanish artist Júlia Sardà.

The Liszt made lists. Scritch, scratch. They made lists most usual. And lists most unusual.

Mama made lists of ghastly illnesses and the greatest soccer players of all time.

Papa made lists of dreaded chores and small winged insects.

They made lists in winter, spring, summer, fall.

They made lists every day except Sundays, which were listless.

One day a visitor arrives – a mysterious, black-coated, oddly-tonsured stranger. He is quizzed by each person (except the introvert Edward, and the cat) about his business at the door.

“I’m here,” he said to Mama.

“Are you on the list?” she asked.

“No,” he said.

“You’re not Pele?”

“No.”

“Ronaldo?”

“No.”

“Then I’m sorry,” she said, getting back to her list.

And on it goes until the stranger encounters Edward, the middle child and the quietest of the family. He doesn’t have a list because he has too many questions. The two take a bit of time to warm up to each other. But then they start to challenge each other to delve into what they feel are some of the most vital issues in the world. The stranger inquires:

“‘HOW DO I KNOW MY LIFE IS NOT A DREAM”…

“IF MY ARMS WERE STRONGER COULD I PICK MYSELF UP?”…

“WHERE ARE MY PANTS?”

Now Edward feels free to ask questions of his own:

“WHY AM I RIGHT-HANDED?”…

“WHERE DID INFINITY START AND HOW WILL IT END?”

Questions lead to exploration which leads to a marvelous trip in a fantastically-realized hot-air balloon, followed by a return to the chaos of the family home. The stranger stays, and the Liszts’ lists keep coming, but now, having realized that any list is always less than definitive:

…they always left a space at the bottom.

“Just in case,” said Edward. “Something unexpected comes up.”

Sardà is clearly inspired by the styles of many modern artists – Picasso, Miro, Cezanne – and borrows from them to good effect. She changes perspective from page to page, and shows astonishing and often amusing detail. Maclear (Julia, Child; Spork) enjoys wordplay, and delineates each quirky character in just a few lines. Of course, the author and illustrator blurbs are in form of lists, as is a piece of publisher’s promotion headed ‘To Do Liszts’ which tells us why we should read the book.

Highly Recommended.

Ellen Heaney is a retired children’s librarian living in Coquitlam, BC.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364 Hosted by the University of Manitoba.