The incredible book-eating boy by Oliver Jeffers - review

The Incredible Book-Eating Boy by Oliver Jeffers.
I just read this book again last night. Love this book. My kids love it too. The foolishness of a boy who EATS books (Henry - he likes the red ones best) instead of reading them appeals to my kids, and Henry's ambition to become the smartest person in the world appeals to me. I really like it when a values message is so subtle that it almost seems unintentional.

The art, done in paint and pencil on old book pages and covers, turns Henry's book love into a tactile and visual experience for the reader. Oliver Jeffers cleverly works the original printed matter into his paintings, and uses scraps of old type in various styles. It's sophisticated and naive at the same time - hipster-friendly, yet warm and funny, with many visual jokes as well as the textual ones. Buy it, give it away, buy another one. The art is too detailed for story times, but for all other uses, superb.