The Lonely Beast

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Have you heard of the Beasts? No, not many people have. That's because they are very rare. This is the tale of one such Beast, whose determination to overcome his loneliness leads him to undertake a daring and dangerous quest to find others like him . . .

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

The eponymous beast is a walking silhouette, with two round, yellow dots for eyes as the only distinguishing feature in his otherwise shaggy, flat black form. Yearning for connection with his own kind ("they are so rare that there is only one Beast in each country... and they don't even know one another"), the Beast goes on a long and arduous quest, exhibiting a Keatonesque physicality and stoicism that's both poignant and funny. Arriving in a human city, he becomes a local favorite, a noted horticulturist, and even a media star ("He talked about his great journey to the city and his search for other Beasts"). Yet Beast can't shake that fish-out-of-water feeling-is sui generis really his destiny? Judge, an illustrator making his picture book debut, isn't entirely successful in keeping his deadpan, reportorial prose from feeling flat and literal, and the happy, Beast-filled ending feels too abrupt and pat. But the Beast has a shaggy charm, and his story could even stir up a discussion about the interplay between acceptance and tribalism. Ages 4-9. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

School Library Journal Review

K-Gr 2-Beast is a quiet creature who tends his own garden and likes to drink tea, read a good book, walk in the snow, stand in the rain, or bake cakes. He is very lonely. A series of images, dominated by the shaggy, yellow-eyed Beast, follows his quest through forest, mountains, rivers, cliffs, waterfalls, caves, and ocean depths to find others of his kind. Page layouts highlight the action with a variety of cell groups in a small series of adventures: four squares to a page, four columns to a page, two rows to a page, two columns, two rows, eight snapshots, or even telescoped speech bubbles. Doubling of the number of images creates a sense of urgency as he finally returns home to find other Beast friends. Color contrasts with the black silhouette of the Beast-bold colors backlight rural scenes and bright pastels in city images. A nonthreatening character despite his penetrating eyes, Beast is humanlike in his needs and emotions as he quickly makes friends. This is a story of longing and perseverance with a touch of humor as Beast even interviews (wearing a tie) on TV. A general purchase for most libraries.-Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano ISD, TX (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

Somewhere in the forest lives a beast. He is not the savage you might imagine; in fact, his garden tending, tea drinking, and cake baking is rather civilized. He is lonely, though. He made up his mind there and then that he would go and find some other Beasts. And so he sets off, across rivers, through caves, over mountains, and under the sea, until finally he arrives in the city. After some initial screaming, the people there let the Beast live in the park, which is nice although he'd still like to find some other Beasts. The Beast is pretty much a Bigfoot, though Judge draws him as a solid-black, hairy mass with two golden eyes, which allows him to stand in for mysterious creatures in general. Though the text is a bit dry, watching this strange biped work his way across the world and back again is a delight, with Judge employing just about every comic-book tool in the book as he slices and dices the page in a dozen different ways. The abrupt ending is a little odd, but, then again, so are Beasts.--Kraus, Danie. Copyright 2010 Booklist

Horn Book Review

There is only one Beast in each country...and they don't even know one another." A lonely Beast sets off to find someone like him. In a series of humorous episodes, he hitches a ride on a whale, beautifies a park, becomes a media darling, etc. This original story is paired with illustrations recalling a large-scale Sunday comic strip. Copyright 2010 of The Horn Book, Inc. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Book Review

Like one of Sendak's wild things embarking on a journey of its own, the hairy monster in this boiled-down quest tale abruptly sets out for parts unknown.Being a featureless, tree-sized black silhouette with two yellow eyes, the solitary Beast looks menacing but leads a peaceable existence in a remote forest. Responding to a sudden yen for companionship, he departs one day on a long trek over land and under seaarriving at last, after many adventures, in a city whose residents quickly get over their initial terror to make him welcome as a gardener in the local park. Being lonely still, he broadcasts public appeals in hopes of reaching others of his kind, then, when that gets no response, sets out again, retracing his original route. Using what looks like paint and cut-paper collage, Judge creates open settings in artfully contrasted colors and textures that give his central figure both a strong visual presence and an enigmatic air carrying hints of deeper meanings. Or maybe not: The Beast arrives back in his garden to find that other Beasts have gathered from all over the world to throw him a surprise party and to stick around forever after for nightly wild rumpuses.The story could use a little more internal logic, but Judge's art stands out.(Picture book. 6-8)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.