Afterward, Everything Was Different: A Tale from the Pleistocene (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781778400605)

STARRED Reviews in Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, Shelf Awareness

A Best Book of the Year--Kirkus, The Times of London

This "beautifully illustrated, nearly wordless book" (New York Times) set in the dawn of human life imagines how art and storytelling were born from the power of one young girl's observation.

Once upon a time, during the Pleistocene, somewhere between two-and-a-half million and ten thousand years ago, small groups of people traveled their known world, hunting for food, seeking shelter, and slowly becoming more like the people we are today.

As far back as 40,000 years ago (and maybe even earlier) people began drawing pictures on cave walls. And a bit later, they carved images onto stones. Some pictures are of humans, usually drawn as stick figures, but most are of animals. We don't know their purpose, though in some cases, evidence seems to suggest they were used for storytelling. But when we look at these pictures, we can't help but admire the extraordinary talent of the first artists. They aren't just scratches on the wall. They are great art.

In this book of few words, we follow a young girl who notices everything that happens around her as her people search for a cave to shelter for the winter. And we can believe that she feels the absolute necessity to draw what she has seen and to tell stories.

Afterward, Everything was Different features:

• Backmatter explaining what we know--and don't know--about cave drawings.
• Stunning black and white illustrations of life during the Pleistocene.

An Aldana Libros Book, Greystone Kids

Author: Jairo Buitrago
ISBN-10: 1778400604
ISBN-13: 9781778400605
Publisher: Greystone Kids
Language: English
Published: 05/09/2023
Pages: 64
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.15lbs
Size: 10.00h x 9.70w x 0.50d

Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 04/15/2023
Booklist 05/01/2023 pg. 43
Horn Book Magazine 05/01/2023 pg. 113
Foreword 04/27/2023
Publishers Weekly 05/29/2023
Shelf Awareness 06/09/2023
Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/2023 - Superior,Well Above Average
School Library Journal 12/22/2023 pg. 1