Safe at Last
Age 3+
Picture Storybooks Animal Stories
A moving picture book about friendship and finding the courage to brave a dark and stormy night by an award-winning author-illustrator.
James lives in a little wooden house beside the sea. Every day he rides his bike around the island, saying hello to all his animal friends; the otters in their mirror-bright pool, the birds in the trees, the bears in their shadow-dark cave and the rabbits in their warm burrow.
Every day is perfect. Perfect, that is, until one night a fierce storm arrives. James braves the wild night to check that his friends are safe, only to find that they have disappeared! Where could they be? James might just find that his friends are closer to home than he thinks.
Creators
Richard Jones grew up in the Midlands and moved to Devon to study illustration at the University of Plymouth. His previous books for Walker include The Squirrels’ Busy Year, Bird Builds a Nest in the Science Storybook series, The Child of Dreams, The Seed of Doubt and Through the North Pole Snow. He also illustrated Marshmallow Clouds, winner of the CLPE Children's Poetry Award.
Reviews
By turns fearsome, surprising, and comforting—an ideal adventure for little ones.
Kirkus Reviews
The wonderfully welcoming world is packed with coziness and kindness, though the squall provides just enough tension to keep things compelling. Softly textured mixed-media illustrations carefully capture both the sunnier side of the island existence along with the dark storm scenes, and lanterns and windows truly seem to glow from within. A gentle gem of an island adventure that readers will long to live in.
Booklist
All ends well in this compelling island adventure in which everyone truly cares about their neighbors. The illustrations create dramatic moments and endearing characters through deliberate use of shape, color, and line and are full of special details to notice.
The Horn Book
