Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 08/01/2021 What happens to a young boy when his whole world changes? In this subtle modern allegory, the narrator tells how the colors were swept from our street, the sounds became quieter, and we were fading. A storm accelerates the process until all that remains is a black-and-white world of lines with nothing in between. The lines seem to isolate and divide people, although the narrator maintains a connection to a little girl across their suddenly divided street. The children embark on an effort to clean up the debris, helping to usher in a return of color and togetherness. Although intended as a parable of child activism, possibly against prejudice, the story is so vague that its specific lessons do not come through clearly. However, the illustrations more than make up for the ambiguity by bringing the atmosphere and ideas of the story to life. The depictions of both isolation and community in a dense urban neighborhood are poignant, especially after a year when COVID-19 forced people worldwide to forgo, and then to reinvent, community togetherness. - Copyright 2021 Booklist.