The Extraordinary Mr. Qwerty

Reviewed by: Carla McAllister - New Gloucester Public Library, New Gloucester, Maine, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: February 4, 2015

Review

This is a book about Mr. Qwerty and his far from ordinary ideas. He is of the mind that no one but he has these strange and imaginative ideas and that others think he is weird. He feels alone with his inventiveness and mental acuity. He hides his ideas under his hat but eventually they grow so big that they escape from under his hat and are seen by all. What will happen to Mr. Qwerty's ideas? How will they be perceived? Will others realize that he is actually quite amazing or will Mr. Qwerty's self-perception become reality? Perchance, will he will cease to feel so friendless and odd? The illustrations are in shades of gray, black, and white with minimal use of color, employing some red, blue and orange. The pictures are very busy and will occupy youngsters through several readings and perusals as they notice all of the inventions and oddities scattered throughout the pages in Rube Goldbergesq fashion. The illustrations also portray the ubiquity and prolific nature of Mr. Qwerty's ruminations and concepts. This book will serve to portray to children that all ideas are worth considering and being brought forth for merit.

Overall Book Score: very good