Maybe Tomorrow? (a story about loss, healing, and friendship)

by Charlotte Agell, Ana Ramírez González (Illustrator)

Overview

This affectionate, deeply soothing story exemplifies how to comfort someone who is hurting. A wonderful gift for any occasion, perfect for fans of The Rabbit Listened.

"[Offers] hope that the world can be beautiful place." —School Library Journal

Elba has a big block. She's been dragging it around for a long time. It makes her walk slowly. It makes her think darkly. It is heavy.

Norris dances everywhere he goes, even uphill. He is always surrounded by a happy cloud of butterflies.

When the two meet, Norris wants Elba to accompany him on a trip to the ocean. But she just wants to sit on her block.

“I feel something in there,” Norris says.

“What?” asks Elba, who doesn’t feel a thing.

“Something sad,” says Norris. “I think it wants to come out.”

In time, Elba agrees to let Norris help her carry her block. Is it possible that once they finally reach the shore, Elba’s block has grown smaller?

This tender exploration of grief will resonate with anyone who has experienced hardship, sensitively demonstrating the healing power of a friend who can see, listen, sit with, and love us through all our feelings.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781338214888
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	03/26/2019
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	207,189
Product dimensions:	7.20(w) x 9.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	500L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Charlotte Agell was born in Norsjo, Sweden, and grew up in Montreal, Canada. She is the mother of two grown children and works as a teacher in Saco, Maine. She is the author and illustrator of several picture books, chapter books, and young adult fiction published in Canada and abroad.

Ana Ramirez Gonzalez fell in love with Maybe Tomorrow? on the first read. "I felt Elba's burden and Norris's kindness in a way that was very personal. The text pulled at my heart because it resonated with something I was experiencing at that time. I felt like fate brought this project to me, and creating the pictures has been healing." Ana worked as a visual development artist on Pixar's Oscar-winning film Coco and illustrated the companion picture book Coco: Miguel and the Grand Harmony. She grew up in Guanajuato, Mexico, and lives in Oakland, California.

Editorial Reviews

12/24/2018

Norris the alligator is optimism personified: he’s so upbeat that a cloud of fluttering butterflies surrounds him wherever he goes. Elba, a pink hippo, couldn’t be more different: she spends her days sitting on a big black block. (“Is it fun?” asks Norris. “Not really. No,” Elba replies.) With Norris’s gentle prodding and willingness to befriend her as she is, Elba reveals that she is mourning the loss of her dear friend, Little Bird (“She taught me to sing. We were hardly ever apart”), and the box gradually shrinks—not disappearing altogether, but growing small enough for Elba to move through the world again, in the company of her new friend. Agell doesn’t make the friendship a teachable moment for irrepressible Norris. He seems to instinctively know how to help his new pal without encroaching on her emotional boundaries; his patient demeanor and her quiet emergence become the story’s narrative. Ramirez’s sunny digitized watercolors echo this hopeful mood with a lightness and energy. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Edite Kroll, Edite Kroll Literary Agency. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Maybe Tomorrow?:"[Offers] hope that the world can be beautiful place...an excellent purchase." —School Library Journal"Demonstrate[s] the power of patience, listening, and simply showing up when loved ones are navigating difficult emotions. Ramírez González's illustrations... utilize bright, textured colors, simple rounded shapes, and subtle yet eloquent facial expressions to sweetly emphasize the characters' emotional journey. A poignant exploration of depression, grief, and friendship. —Kirkus Reviews"Norris the alligator is optimism personified... Elba, a pink hippo, couldn't be more different...With Norris's gentle prodding and willingness to befriend her as she is, Elba reveals that she is mourning the loss of her dear friend, Little Bird...Norris seems to instinctively know how to help his new pal without encroaching on her emotional boundaries; his patient demeanor and her quiet emergence become the story's narrative. Ramírez González's sunny digitized watercolors echo this hopeful mood with a lightness and energy." —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

02/01/2019

K-Gr 2—Elba, a pink hippopotamus, is weighed down by a heavy black block. Representing depression, anxiety, or sadness, the block is physically tethered to Elba, and greatly limits what she can do. Enter Norris, an alligator so cheerful that he dances everywhere he goes, "even uphill," surrounded by bevy of butterflies. Norris kindly but persistently encourages Elba to join him in various activities. Slowly, patiently, he cajoles Elba to try a few new things, always in a way that is comfortable for her. When it is raining, Norris joins Elba sitting on her block, and they quietly have tea. When Norris wants to go to the beach, he and the butterflies help Elba move the block. As they spend more time together, Elba eventually tells Norris about her friend, Little Bird, who is gone. Nonspecific about Little Bird's whereabouts, the painfulness of loss is a emotion that many children will recognize. Norris's concern for Elba does not erase her pain, but helps her manage it a little better. Watercolor, charcoal, graphite, and a combination of traditional and digital brushes are used to create appealing illustrations that acknowledge Elba's sadness while still offering hope that the world can be beautiful place. VERDICT This sensitive story will be valuable to adults helping children recognize and understand grief; an excellent purchase.—Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond

School Library Journal

2018-11-26

Cheerful green alligator Norris attempts to befriend Elba, a pink hippo burdened by a mysterious black block.

Norris may initially appear to be a suspiciously friendly predator, but, as evidenced by the cloud of butterflies that accompanies him everywhere, he is genuinely considerate. He finds Elba sitting on her block in the park and invites her on a picnic, then continues to check in with her after she declines. Elba is surprised when Norris joins her in sitting on her block, telling her he feels "something [sad] in there" and that "it wants to come out." "Maybe tomorrow," he says after they sit in silence each day. With Norris' patient encouragement—observe his hopeful smile as they drink tea in the rain!—Elba soon agrees to visit the ocean with him, though she doubts she can make it that far with her block: "It's too heavy….Right?" she asks, which he does not deny, instead responding, "My butterflies and I will help you." As they slowly walk to the ocean, Elba finally opens up to Norris about the deep sadness her block represents. His empathetic response and its surprising result demonstrate the power of patience, listening, and simply showing up when loved ones are navigating difficult emotions. Ramírez's illustrations, done in a combination of traditional and digital media, utilize bright, textured colors, simple rounded shapes, and subtle yet eloquent facial expressions to sweetly emphasize the characters' emotional journey.

A poignant exploration of depression, grief, and friendship. (Picture book. 3-8)

Kirkus Reviews