Stanley Mows the Lawn

Simple story. Great artwork. My boys enjoy this one. There really aren't a lot of stories out there about mowing so it's a nice change of pace. I enjoy exposing them to different types of art as well as great stories and this one is really more about the artwork than the story for me. But the story seems to work for the boys so we're all happy.

I bought "Stanley Goes For a Drive" in a discount box at a grocery store and it has turned out to be one of the kids' favorites, so when I saw "Stanley Mows the Lawn" I bought it without even reading it first. The kids love the bold colors and the different ways of looking at the same scene. It is changing the way they look at things and even the way they draw objects around them. It was also a reminder to me, as their mother, that we don't always see things the same way and it pays to get down on their level and look around every now and then.

Famed graphic designer Craig Frazier draws massive but simple geometrical shapes, muscular outlines, and flattened but textured backgrounds that show off Stanley, the protagonist of this book and the earlier "Stanley Goes for a Drive." Frazier chose pleasing shades of computer-generated green for `Lawn,' as opposed to the somewhat ugly, almost sickening brown that predominates in `Drive." As a result, nothing detracts from Frazier's graphic mastery, and he treats the reader to an aesthetic triumph. Aside from the unexpectedly luminescent green sky, Frazier constantly surprises the reader with his abrupt changes in composition and point of view. The first two-page spread shows Stanley's boots and upper calves only, set against a dark green blades and a low horizon of green sky with milky white clouds. Turn the page and you see all of Stanley, but he's a small figure in the upper left corner of a page that shows a gigantic textured green lawn. A spray of cut leaves arches over Stanley's small but powerful figure, framing and defining him. Finally, the next two-page illustration shows a close profile of Stanley mowing, with his oversized, powerful legs and arms, and a determined look on his face as his black and gold mover cut a swath almost as deep as his boots. These varied, imaginative illustrations make for a very appealing and magnetic book, especially for those interested in or drawn this bold style of illustration. Yes, there's a plot, too. It's simple but clever. It coordinates with the pictures but takes a back seat to them. As Stanley mows his deep straight furrows, he sees a friendly long green snake ("Hank") slithering between the cut and uncut sections. Taking a clue from Hank's curvy, twisting shape, we read: "Stanley had an idea. Stanley zigged. And Stanley zagged. When Stanley finished mowing, he looked at the lawn. He liked it. And so did Hank." We see overhead and straight-on views of Stanley's lawn sculpture: Instead of one even plane, the lawn alternates cut and uncut rows of undulating green, suggesting breaking waves or a chorus line of snakes. Craig Frazier's varied, imaginative illustrations and spare but complementary story make for a very appealing and compelling book, especially for those interested in or drawn to this bold style of illustration.

This is truly a fun book. Beautifully illustrated. Unique. It challenged my imagination thus: As Stanley was mowing his tall lawn Mr. Snake was apparently not gone. As the mower grew near Mr. Snake could not hear And forever became part of the lawn. I think Craig Fraizier's book will inspire you too.

Another wonderful book from Frazier. But don't take my word for it... here's what the reviewer said in the Washington Post: "Stanley's an ordinary fellow with an extraordinary imagination. Last year, readers may recall, he went for a drive, which wasn't much fun until a glimpse of some cows by the roadside gave him a life-altering idea. Here he sets out to mow the lawn, which also proves a grind -- just "up and back, up and back, up and back" -- until an encounter with Hank the shade-loving, zigzagging snake sparks another bright notion. Grass clippings fly on grass-green pages, and the perspective switches fittingly back and forth as Stanley carves out a lawn that suits them both."