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Summary
Summary
Sebastian didn't talk very much, even though he had a lot to say. He wanted to tell the barber not to make his head look like a billiard ball. He wanted to tell the neighbors that he hadn't grown all that much. And he wanted to ask Ester, the little girl who sat in front of him at school, if she wanted to be friends. But he couldn't. He couldn't say any of those things. Sebastian was shy. He was very shy. And then one day he finds an old pair of roller skates in the park. Roller skating is hard to learn, but if you practice, and practice, and practice, and then if you forget about worrying, and forget about falling and just skate, well, everything changes. And sometimes if you forget about worrying and forget about blushing and just talk, well, everything changes again. Children and adults alike will find that this award-winning picture book has a lot to say both about recognizing who you are, and who you'd like to be.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Sebastian always has a lot to say, but he is too shy to speak up. He won't answer in class, tell the barber that he doesn't like his haircut, or talk to his neighbors. He is especially shy around the curly haired girl he likes at school. Then one day, Sebastian finds an abandoned pair of roller skates and tries them on. At first, he falls down and decides that skating is not for him. However, these mysterious skates won't go away and eventually he is gliding through the park. Soon, with his newfound courage, he is talking in spite of himself-after all, he has always had a lot to say. The cartoon illustrations tell what the text cannot, as a collage of torn-paper "thoughts" spills from Sebastian's head whenever he wants to talk. The collages start out in black and white but as Sebastian grows more confident and begins to share his thoughts aloud, they erupt into full color. Careful observers will notice that details from previous spreads reappear a few pages later in Sebastian's thoughts and that any text in his mind and in the art itself are in Spanish as this book was originally published in Spain. There is much to be savored in this story of self-discovery, and young audiences will find something new with each rereading.-Julie Roach, Watertown Free Public Library, MA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Sebastian may have a couple of spills as he learns to roller skate, but this tale from a Spanish team never takes a misstep. The young hero's shyness stops him from saying all he wants to, and from approaching his schoolmate Ester (she "had curly hair and eyes the color of honey"). A pair of roller skates he finds in a park fascinates him, and as Sebastian masters this new skill, he also finds the courage to say more. Rovira's confident caricature-style human figures all share the same wide-open eyes and stubby, squared-off noses; by contrast, he distinguishes objects in minute details, with addresses lettered on packing boxes and bulletin boards crowded with drawings and announcements. The artist has great fun rendering the story of Sebastian's interior life, gluing a dense trail of dreary black-and-white newspaper scraps above Sebastian's head to signal his trapped thoughts in the opening scenes, then scattering brilliantly colored scraps and photographs as the boy brims with opinions he says aloud: "And this time I don't want my head to look like a billiard ball!" he tells the barber. He even invites Ester to go skating. Sebastian's transformation emerges naturally, rather than from methods or techniques. He discovers the skates, practices hard and persistently, and his new abilities unfold on their own. Shy readers may well emerge with the feeling that change is indeed possible. Ages 5-9. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Painfully shy Sebastian does not speak up, even when the barber gives him a ""billiard ball"" haircut. He tentatively tries on a pair of found roller skates and takes his first unsteady steps toward self-assurance. Though the collage scraps that seem to represent Sebastian's thoughts tend to overwhelm the illustrations, the text and art subtly show his growing confidence. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
PreS-Gr. 2. This picture book from Spain features Sebastian, a boy so shy that he can barely whisper a word to his apartment-house neighbors, his barber, or even his teacher. Inside his head, though, he has plenty to say. Finding a pair of roller skates abandoned in the park, he tries skating but goes so slowly that he stumbles from one place to the next. When he catches hold of a runaway dog's leash and takes a wild ride though the park, Sebastian is spurred to overcome his hesitancy in skating and, even better, in speaking to those around him. His happiness shines from his face and from the collage of images that represent his words and thoughts. First in shades of gray and later in brilliant colors, the collage elements imaginatively express what Sebastian is feeling as well as what he is saying. The universality of Sebastian's experience ensures that this pleasing picture book, translated from the original Catalan, will resonate with children on this side of the Atlantic. --Carolyn Phelan Copyright 2005 Booklist
