Deep in the Forest

Deep in the Forest (1976), by Brinton Turkle, is a wonderful wordless picture book with a unique take on the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  This fantasy portrays a young bear sneaking into a human’s home in the woods and tasting and trying the food and the furniture until he finds the one that he likes best.  When the humans come home, they find a disaster in the house with things thrown everywhere, and a surprise of the bear sleeping in their bedroom.  The narrator, who is the reader, interprets the pictures and the story by means of imagination.  They conjure up how the story is told while the pictures are there to guide the reader to Turkle’s overall message:  one should not use things without the owner’s permission.  This follows the theme of personal and social growth among children. 

The pictures in the book are simple but strong.  Turkle’s use of pencil in the drawings creates a cool sense of realism.  Although the pictures are impressionistic, the movement created by lines gives the reader a sense of direction, as if they know where the story will lead to next.  The lines also create a sense of rough texture among the pictures.  This texture makes the objects stand out more and seem more real, which in turn makes the story seem more plausible to the reader.  The story is relevant to people of all ages, for this book can teach a simple lesson, even without words.  

Galda, Lee, Bernice Cullinan.  “Chapter 2:  The Art of Picture Books.”  Literature and the Child, Sixth Edition.  Thomson Wadsworth, 2006:  27-54.

Turkle, Brinton.  Deep in the Forest. New York:  Dutton Children’s Books, 1976.