Calvin, Center of the Universe: The Beginning - Doug Gonterman

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Author: Doug Gonterman

Illustrator: Fabio Magnasciutti
Genre: Children's Picture Book
Rating: 4.5 stars.

What a fun story with an adorable little protagonist!

I must admit, the title made me feel like I would meet a self-centred boy who considers himself the be-all and end-all of everything. However, what I wasn’t prepared for was a logical reasoning about why the six year old considers himself the “center of the universe”. His thinking was silly and hilarious, and yet felt so accurate. His rationale last for most of this picture book, and the last few pages hint at what he plans to do with his important status. 😉

Having Calvin as a name is a risky proposition; it immediately brings to mind the other, more popular six year old Calvin that we all know and love. The Calvin in this book borrows a lot of his personality from Bill Watterson’s creation. It’s a high standard to aim for, and this little indie book does its best to match up to the expectations. Luckily, the book is great, so there’s no disappointment. But a small part of me feels that having a different name for the little boy would have been even better as we would have read the book without Hobbes’ friend influencing our experience.

The story is written in simple prose with not more than a couple of lines on every page. The official age range is 4-9 years, but even younger kids will enjoy this story if read aloud to them.

The illustrations are gorgeous, though I can’t help feel that I missed out on their actual beauty on my digital copy. I don’t know what art style was used, but it looks perfect for a children’s picture book. The graphics pop out of every page, despite the darkish hues.

I never mention the font in my picture book reviews as I am never sure if the ARCs I get retain the actual font used. But the feature deserves a mention this time around. I loved the font, and not just for its comfortable size. It was the right fit for a children’s book – a little wonky, a little wacky, a little wild, a load of wonderful. (These adjectives apply to the eponymous Calvin as well!)

Overall, a sweet story that children are sure to love. This volume clearly sets off a series, and I would love to be part of Calvin’s future journeys.

My thanks to author Doug Gonterman and BookSirens for the DRC of “Calvin, Center of the Universe: The Beginning”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

PS: I love the name of the publishers - “Hypnotized Librarians”! How funky does that sound!

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