Review: Trevor and Me by Yuno Imai

Today's story is one, which resonated with me thanks to one of my own childhood 'friends'.  Not only is this a lovely, heart-warming read with beautiful, watercolor illustrations, but I learned that the author's Japanese works have hit the #1 spot on new releases. 

TREVOR AND ME

by Yuno Imai

Picture Book

24 pages

ages 4 to 8

Trevor and Me defies the boundaries of age, gender and race. It is a heartwarming story about reincarnation based on the real-life friendship between an elderly Caucasian man and a young Asian girl. As Trevor's health starts to decline and he prepares to die, he promises to always be with the girl even after he's gone. Trevor dies and the girl is filled with grief until one day she begins to receive signs to let her know Trevor is and always will be with her.

GOODREADS / AMAZON / YUNO'S WEBSITE

MY TIDBITS

With warmth and love on every page, this takes a wonderful glance at a friendship, which defies time and age. 

The tale centers around a young girl, who has a very special friend, Trevor. She describes some of the things she enjoys doing with him, the likes they share, and builds a lovely picture of friendship. But the girl notices that Trevor is growing less hungry and more tired as time goes on. One day, he tells her that he's going to leave soon, but will send signs that he's always with her. Now, she waits for these.

When I was young, we had a neighbor much like Trevor, who was our best friend. This book definitely hit upon those memories and had me smiling. But this book isn't intended for me. 

I do see children enjoying this one, especially those who have or have had a friend who is up in the years like Trevor. There are many happy moments in these pages, which simply warm the heart. Even when Trevor passes, it is done with great care and very age appropriate. While the moment is sad, this book shows that having someone in your heart...even as a memory...is very special. It's a great way to hit such a difficult topic.

As if the tale isn't lovely enough, the illustrations add extra cream and cherries. The watercolors radiate a gentle joy, while allowing the tale to unfold in detail. It was fun just to flip through these and enjoy the scenes.

I can recommend this one to young readers, especially those who can relate with the girl's situation.

And here she is...

Yuno Imai is a best-selling children’s book author and Japanese writer based in Los Angeles. She specializes in writing heartwarming stories that help readers cope with death or develop a healthy understanding of difficult subjects.

Website: http://iknowyouknowyuno.com/books
Instagram: @yunobook     https://www.instagram.com/yunobook/