GOLIATH

A boy, huge and completely bright
red, narrates his quest to discover how and where to belong in this German
import by a Spanish creator.

“I wanted to be like everyone else…
/ …even though I was much bigger.” He tries to exploit his difference through
boxing, but no one dares to oppose him. Figuring that geography might be the
fix, Goliath begins a journey of discovery. Querying the ocean, then the sun, he’s
met with both splendor and silence. It’s the Earth-tethered moon who provides
an answer, offering beautifully observed, existential wisdom: “Goliath, look at
me. I am smaller than the sun, and I am bigger than the ocean, but it does not
matter, because there is no one else like me. So, why does it matter to you if
you are big or small?” As this big truth penetrates, Abadía centers Goliath as
a tiny figure on an ink-black page. “Whoever was looking at me… / …would never
see me in the same way.” Abadía’s pictures embody a dynamic interplay of color,
form, and perspective. Gestural lines, hard- and brushy-edged shapes, and a palette
of red, yellow, green, black, and blue carry the bold design statement,
complemented by a tall, thin trim size and wryly chosen font (Super Grotesk). Early
and later spreads and endpapers convey that Goliath’s epiphany coincides with
his integration into a newly vibrant community of children.

Profound—both visually and
philosophically. (Picture book. 5-9)