In the Half Room

by Carson Ellis

From the Caldecott Honor–winning creator of Home and Du Iz Tak? comes a gorgeous and quirky tale of a wholly extraordinary room where everything is a half.

The light of the half moon
Shines down on the half room…

The half room is full of half things. A half chair, a half cat, even half shoes—all just as nice as whole things. When half a knock comes on half a door, who in the world could it be? With inventive flair, Caldecott Honor winner Carson Ellis explores halves and wholes in an ingenious and thought-provoking picture book. Ink and gouache illustrations featuring wry detail and velvety textures conjure a dreamlike mood while leaving space for imagining. A celebration of the surreal and the serendipitous and the beauty of the two together, this brilliant picture book will have readers seeing halves with whole new eyes.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Mathematics, Fantasy, Art, Juvenile, Animals

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 13, 2020

About the author

Carson Ellis is the author and illustrator of the bestselling picture books Home and Du Iz Tak? (a Caldecott Honor book and the recipient of an E.B. White Read Aloud Award). She has illustrated a number of books for kids including The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart, The Composer Is Dead by Lemony Snicket, and The Wildwood Chronicles by her husband, Colin Meloy. Carson has been awarded silver medals by the Society of Illustrators for her work on Wildwood Imperium and on Dillweed's Revenge by Florence Parry Heide. She's the illustrator-in-residence for Colin's band, The Decemberists, and received Grammy nominations in 2016 and 2018 for album art design. She works sporadically as an editorial illustrator for The New Yorker, The New York Times, and others publications and exhibits art on occasion. She’s represented by Nationale in Portland.

Carson lives on a farm in Oregon with Colin, their two sons, two cats, one llama, three goats, many chickens, and an unfathomable multitude of tree frogs.

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the Half Room features a half world, half a person on half a chair reading half a book with half a cat. When there is half a knock at the half door, the person meets their other half. Later the cat meets the other half too, the pictures of the two halves play fighting were amusing. I thought things would come together more at the end, but they didn’t, just the person became whole, the cat stayed in two halves. Although this didn’t reach a conclusion or seem make any point that I could pick up on I did enjoy it and the illustrations are lovely.

Obviously it will have to be three and a half stars ;-)

[Jae · Rating 4 out of 5]

It half reminds me of Goodnight Moon.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Illustrator at large Carson Ellis, whose work has appeared in such publications as The New York Times and The New Yorker, who has received Grammy nominations for her album cover art, and whose previous picture-book, Du Iz Tak? was chosen as a Caldecott Honor Book in 2017, presents an appealingly surreal tale here. In the eponymous half room we have a half table, a half carpet, a half cat and a half girl. When the girl's other half comes knocking, she is made whole, but when the other side of the cat shows up, all is not so easily resolved...

In the Half Room is the third of Ellis' own picture-books, although she has illustrated a number of examples of the form written by other authors, and it strikes me as being exactly the kind of conceptual, quirky book that she would produce. According to her brief note at the rear, it was inspired by a discussion with her son. The artwork itself is lovely, the concept intriguing. I wasn't sure how to interpret the ending - perhaps its symbolizes the conflicted nature of cats, or perhaps it simply depicts how they are always twisting themselves around in order to chase their own tales? - but that very ambiguity felt appropriate, given the story. As others have observed, this feels like an homage to classic picture-books like Goodnight Moon . Recommended to fans of Carson Ellis' artwork, and to picture-book readers who like quirky, open-ended bedtime books.

[Michele Knott]

This one made no sense to me. If I'm missing something, let me know.

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one went over my head 🤷🏼‍♀️

[Panda Incognito · Rating 4 out of 5]

For once, my unpopular opinion is that I actually like something more than other people do. Even though this book weirded out other reviewers, I found it fascinating, and enjoyed the surreal artwork and strange occurrences. Although I can see why someone might find this story creepy, I just found it fanciful and unexpected, and it's the kind of thing that will make impressions on small children that they carry well into adulthood.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Imagine if Goodnight Moon happened in a surreal time and place where half of a moon had the power to change how we see and experience things. Nothing will harm you there, but nothing is quite like it seems.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes you just need a kid’s book for a palate cleanser.✨

[Chance Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Half a review for this book, it's

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't always been the biggest fan of other popular books by this author, but this one really worked for us.

[Maddie Van Lith · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't dislike this book but it also wasn't my favorite. If there is a deeper meaning to it, it went over my head, but overall it's very simple with little words, but may be good for younger children.

[Kim]

What was this?!?!

[Amy!]

This book is weird! I don't get it!

Aaaand I'm just seeing that it's by the same creator as Du Iz Tak?, and yeah, makes sense.

[Karen Arendt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reminiscent of Good Night Moon. I love the kittens, too.

[Jennifer McCallum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Non-sensical and surreal, it made me chuckle when the cat begins to fight with itself, possible just due to the sheer madness of it. I would love to see children's responses to this book.
The illustrations are beautiful and invite you into the world of half.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is was a delight to read.

[M. Lauritano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not having been able to spend my typical amount of time perusing the shelves in this pandemic, when compiling a Christmas list of picture books, I had to ask myself, whose book would I want sight unseen? What author illustrator fits the bill better than Carson Ellis?

This is an immaculately designed and illustrated book. Every visual choice feels so right to me, which some might find an odd evaluation for a story that is so surreal. If you are not the sort of person to accept and enjoy the concept of a world where everything exists in halves, In the Half Room is definitely not for you. For those who do not find themselves unsettled, there is a delight in exploring this space where halves balance as if they are complete and half cats sprawl oddly on half-rugs. I found myself occasionally testing the logic of the world. Would a half moon in a half moon phase be a quarter moon? Is one knock half a knock because no one really raps just once when they knock? The childlike logic especially shines when two half women become a whole, delineated by the word “SHOOOOOP.”

As others have noted, Goodnight Moon seems to be a clear influence here. Just as in that seminal text a room (which, intended or otherwise, does seem to have an odd air about it) is explored through repetitive language before an ultimate goodnight. Objects (and eventually even noises) are given a kind of personhood as they are bid goodnight by the narrator. I would argue that Half Room tries something in a more roundabout abstract way. When we are confronted with two halves of a woman that reunite and two half cats that remain separate, the natural questions that might follow are: what does it mean to be whole? What does wholeness feel like in the times we experience it? Can one find wholeness when at odds with oneself? Is the appearance of being half of something, incompleteness, only a perceived illusion, like a half moon in the sky?

I am reminded of Aristophanes’ notion that men and women were once one being, cut in two by Zeus and now destined to search for our other half. It might be that Ellis’ ending is a refutation of this type of idea. Platonic dialogues aside, In the Half Room presents us with a different kind of evening comfort, one that invites us to wonder and dream.

[Michelle (FabBookReviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carson Ellis, acclaimed author and illustrator behind Du Iz Tak?, Home, and The Shortest Day (written by Susan Cooper) brings readers to an incredibly unusual, beautiful world with the picture book In the Half Room. At times reading like a playful take on Margaret Wise Brown’s classic Goodnight Moon, In the Half Room is a poetic get-ready-for-bed book- with a curve! In Ellis’s picture book, everything is in half: “Half chair/Half hat/two shoes, each half/Half table/Half cat/Half a window/Half a door/Half a rug on half a floor”. As “the light of the half moon shines down on the half room”, readers see half of an orange-haired girl with freckles quietly reading half of a book by half of the light from half of a lamp. Hmm. So curious! Why is everything in half? What is happening in this room? A glimpse at “half a moon in a half-moon phase” then brings quite a surprise to the door; a great big “SHOOOOOP” then brings something back together as a whole; and an unexpected feline tussle brings readers to ending wishes for a “Good night!”. The magic of In the Half Room’s story and artwork is arguably in the experience- how each reader and/or listener experiences, feels, and thinks about the story. By turns fantastical and outlandish, yet also cozy, dream-like and so much fun- and with a “SHOOOOOP” that might prove extremely entertaining to perform at storytime- In the Half Room is another winning flight of wonder from Carson Ellis.

I received a copy of this title courtesy of Candlewick Press/Penguin Random House Canada in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and comments are my own.

[Surya V.n · Rating 5 out of 5]

இந்தப் படப்புத்தகத்தில் அரைப்பகுதி மட்டுமே திகழும் ஓர் உலகம் சித்தரிக்கப்படுகிறது. நாற்காலி, ரோஜா, சாளரம், கதவு, பூனை, நிலவு அப்புறம் ஒருவர் என அனைத்துமே இருக்கின்றன ஆனால் பாதியாக. அரைப்பகுதி மட்டுமேயுள்ள கதவும் கூட பாதி அளவில் தட்டப்படுகிறது (Half a knock on a half door. ) மற்றொரு அரை மனிதர் வருகிறார். இருவரும் இணைந்து முழுமை அடைகின்றனர். கடைசிப் பகுதியில், இரண்டு அரைப்பூனைகள் சண்டையிடுகின்றன, (Two half cats in a half-cat fight) இறுதியில் ஒன்றாக உறங்குகின்றன. Good night என்று ஒரு புதிர் போல புத்தகம் முற்றுபெறுகிறது.

சொல்வதில் ஆர்வம்காட்டாமல் உணர்த்துவதில் மும்முரமாக இருப்பதால் கிட்டத்தட்ட கவிதை என்றுதான் சொல்லவேண்டும்.

மனிதன் முழுமையைத் தேடும் ஒரு சமூக விலங்காக இருக்கிறான் ஆனால் முழுமையில் நம்மால் இருக்க இயலாது அதேசமயம் நிறைவின்மையிலும் நம்மால் தரிக்க இயலாது. இந்த முரண், மானுட இருப்பின் ஆழத்திலேயே உள்ளது. இந்தப் படக்கதை அந்த நித்திய முரணை போகிறப்போக்கில் சுட்டிவிடுகிறது. சடசடவென ஓர் எதிர்வினை போல பல கவிதை வரிகள் எனக்கு நினைவுக்கு வந்தன. ஒரு கவிதை. இது தாமஸ் ட்ரான்ஸ்ட்ரோமர்.

Romanesque Arches

Inside the huge romanesque church the tourists jostled in the half darkness.
Vault gaped behind vault, no complete view.
A few candle-flames flickered.
An angel with no face embraced me
and whispered through my whole body:
‘Don’t be ashamed of being human, be proud!
Inside you vault opens behind vault endlessly.
You will never be complete, that’s how it’s meant to be.’
Blind with tears
I was pushed out on the sun-seething piazza
together with Mr and Mrs Jones, Mr Tanaka and Signora Sabatini
and inside them all vault opened behind vault endlessly.

கிட்டத்தட்ட நீ ஒருபோதும் முழுமை அடையவே மாட்டாய் என்றே சொல்லிவிடுகிறார். எமிலி டிக்கின்சனோ The soul should always stand ajar என்கிறாள். மற்றொரு கவிதை. போலாந்து கவி ஜூலியா ஹார்ட்விக் எழுதியது.

Feeling the Way

The most beautiful is what is still unfinished
a sky filled with stars uncharted by astronomers
a sketch by Leonardo a song broken off from emotion
A pencil a brush suspended in the air.

"The most beautiful is what is still unfinished"
ஆம். ஆம். நாம் ஒருவகையில் முதல் வரைவுகள்தானே 😅. நிறைய அடித்தல்திருத்தல்கள். சில பிரமாதமான இடங்கள். மரணம் வந்துதான் நம்மை இறுதி வரைவாக ஆக்குகிறது. இறுதிவரைவு அர்த்தப்பூர்வமானதா? இது மிகவும் அடிப்படையான வினா...

[Jonathan Haddad · Rating 4 out of 5]

My daughter and I are big fans of Caron Ellis's previous work. Her illustrations evoke an uncanny dream space that mirrors an everyday storybook repertoire but with some wild twists and turns. At the end of the reading experience, we feel just a smidge closer to the workings of Ellis's idiosyncratic imagination. In the Half Room is no different. A wry tribute to Goodnight Moon, its pages turn to reveal half after half after half. I half to admit (hehe) that I wasn't quite sure where this book was going for a bit, and my daughter's seizure medication had kicked in, so she really started tuning out. Is there a denouement? I mean, in the sense that the book turns on a "knock" and a "shoop,"sure, I guess. Is it that important, though? The book is definitely worthwhile contemplation, and I am reluctant to ask for more. Granted, it did not offer the emotional oomph of Home, which really brought it home like Mel Tormé or Herbie Mann at the end, but I think we can enjoy spending time with this artist anyway.

I must add, that Ellis's dedication at the end was revelatory. In grad school, I took a history-writing workshop and one of my classmates always started the discussion of a book by making some inside-publishing analysis of the acknowledgements. It was to the point of wondering whether she had actually read any of the book itself. Later I saw that she had written some kind of e-book memoir of her surprising experience of having a brain tumor. Anyway, don't go to grad school in the humanities if you can avoid it. This book's dedication revealed not only Ellis's son as the inspiration for the "half" idea, but also lists the names of all the author's previous cats, of which I must point out that Couscous is probably the most classic pet name. One must half hope that in the next installment of Ellis's work Richard Scarry's Couscous, the dog detective master of disguises, will make an appearance. Or would that be too clever by half?

[寿理 宮本 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tempted to leave a half-review, haha.

This is a weird poem about a half room full of "half" things, like 0.58 Boy from The Phantom Tollbooth, although the half cat is the only thing that isn't top-to-bottom half but front-to-back.

Well, and the half-shoes, which are each the heel, minus the toes.

The story is interesting for its brevity, but it's a bit too weird to really stay with me like... say... Where the Wild Things Are might (if comparing stories of similar length). I mean, also I have this fear of decapitation, so even though this is "surreal" halving vs. mutilation, it sort of irks me a bit, despite being "clean" and also a sort of positive book (surprisingly).

[Eve Costarelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Illumination is at the heart of this story and how a moon lights a room and at times how everything seems to only be a series of halves. It is quirky and at the first pass through might seem “disconnected” but by allowing the imagination to fill in the dark spots, we can see the mystery revealed. A child, who does not know the phases of the moon, might not understand why they only see half a moon, half a table or half a cat so they will explore this option with glee and curiosity. It is very crafty and is a book about halves and wholes that allows the imagination to explore what the eyes are seeing. The surreal artwork lends a touch of fantasy to the story and brings to mind some of the great surreal art by the likes of Dali, Picasso and Arp. This is a slyly sophisticated book, take a look!

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

Caldecott honor winner Ellis has written and illustrated a book about halfs. A half chair, half hat and half table. For two shoes there are two halves, each half. There is also a half cat. Ellis uses language and simple rhymes to be part of the illustrations all set to a cream colored background. She does not use “a” for the first couple of words but when the book progresses there is “half a window” and “half a door”. There is even half a face and after “half a knock on half a door” the white girl is completed with the other half. This brings her joy and makes her dance in the half moon light. The cat on the other hand is not too pleased with its other half and it becomes a half-cat fight. An interesting picture book that could be used in an art lesson or language arts to stir the imagination and challenge expectations of all those halves.
Written
AD
Kindergarten through 3rd grade

[Ella · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very abstract book with lots of half things. I think children would enjoy reading this as a read aloud story but also exploring it individually or with a friend. The ideas are very strange but that makes the book interesting. When the lady finds her other half, this could be linked to finding the real you and the things you like and what our personality. I would link the book to maths and fractions. Discussing what parts of the book are real halves and which are not. Some things like the moon are truly halved but the idea of half a cat isn’t accurate so without this discussion it could add to misconceptions about what a half is. A nice book for KS1 - year 3 children.

[Beverly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Possible contender for the Mock Caldecott Awards in January. Ok, so I just don't get it...everything is shown at just a half...the door, the table, the cat, the lady of the house...the lady's other half does show up at the door and they rejoin but when the cat's other half shows up, they just tumble and play and fight and then fall asleep curled up next to each other. I think this would just be confusing for children.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspired by his son, Carson Ellis creates a poetic story that challenges expectations of what "should be" and what happens when it isn't. "Half a knock" at the "half door" makes one quite curious as to who is behind that door. With only brief text, the ink and gouache illustrations tell the story. How is it to live in a "half-life"? etc. I'd love to discuss this with a group of students. Thanks to Candlewick Press for this copy!

[W · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very weird book but at the same time its very mundane. I don’t know how to explain it other than… its really weird… but really mundane. It feels like that black and white French film La Jetee where when you’ve finished watching it you feel like you watched someone else’s dream. I’m kind of obsessed with it, but it is definitely not for everyone. Although the ending with the cat is absolutely hilarious and 100% accurate. Are you curious yet??? You should at least give it a try :)

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

In The Half Room by Carson Ellis is a quirky, cute, story on explaining the phases of the moon. A child, who does not know the phases of the moon, might not understand why they only see half a moon, half a table or half a cat so this book is a great, simple explanation full of cute illustrations and rhymes.
This is a surprisingly sophisticated book, a great bedtime story or book to read for elementary students.

[Melissa the Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is weird and I don't get it, but I also really like it at the same time. The rhythm of the text is reminiscent of Goodnight Moon.

UPDATE: I read this out loud to my coworker, and she said everything is in half because there's a half-moon's worth of light. I didn't get that when I read the book myself, but I think it's because I was too distracted by the cut-in-half illustrations.

[Jessica Furtado · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciate the layered meaning of this somewhat surreal and fanciful picture book. Children will be curious about the whimsical half room, while adults may take the message that we must go through phases of dark and light to find our full selves.

It’s deceptively simple, but there’s more to discover upon rereading.