So off he swims alone, on an intrepid, fearful adventure.

One day his little red brothers and sisters are gobbled up by a tuna fish. Swimmy is the only little black fish in a school of little red fish. I defy anyone not to have fun creating images like these. With what resembles a potato printed jellyfish, to doily printed seaweed, Lionni’s use of simple but impacful techniques, can’t fail to make the reader smile.

The almost childlike nature of his illustrations, make his work even more accessible to an emerging and younger reader. Lionni’s easily identifiable, signature style, created in a time before the digital age began, sees his raw yet sophisticated illustrations, filled with splodges of colour and an abundance of texture. The descriptions of the creatures Swimmy encounters will make you say, “Oh, my, yes! That’s exactly what it’s like!” I especially like the lobster “who walked about like a water-moving machine” and the eel “whose tail was almost too far away to remember.“Swimmy” by Leo Lionni, is a powerful story about working together and using your initiative to overcome obstacles. The words are wonderful too, simple but so lyrical and perfect. Water-color is the lovely for a story set entirely under the sea. The water-color illustrations are wonderful. Just right.īut the sea was full of wonderful creatures, and as he swam from marvel to marvel Swimmy was happy again. And all these BIG topics are handled with a light, clear touch. This is a book about grief, fear, friendship, and the ways beauty and purpose heal us. But it works just as well in the classroom and at home, to help little readers ponder how important they can be to one another. Personally, I have used it at work to train authors, bloggers, and podcasters how to succeed at collaborative marketing. Why haven’t you read it?!? There is so much in this book! Swimmy shows his friends how-with ingenuity and team work-they can overcome any danger.” Their watery world is full of wonders, but there is also danger, and the little fish are afraid to come out of hiding. “ The gorgeous, Caldecott Honor-winning tale of a very clever fish by beloved picture book creator Leo Lionni.ĭeep in the sea lives a happy school of fish.

Swimmy by leo lionni