Tjitske Kamphuis’ Go, Crow is an immersive, dreamy book that’s sparse in text but rich in visual splendor—and the subtle power of a story about a day in the life of an enigmatic, beautiful crow.
After finishing this rhyming, rhythmic tale, readers will find new meaning in the idiom “as the crow flies.” They will have witnessed its star corvid gracefully soaring above a broad expanse of land, achieving an important goal and experiencing the satisfying fullness of a day depicted from bright morning to dark night.
First, the crow—with black feathers, yellow eyes and a grayish beak curved up into a slight smile—awakens in her nest, warm in the sunrise on a page containing a single word: “Glow.” As the sun moves higher in the sky, it’s “Go!” time. During its flight, the crow is pushed forward by gusts of wind (“Blow.”) and then glides (“Flow.”) through a calmer sky. After she passes over the colorful tapestry of a working farm (“Grow.”) dotted with trees, crop rows, flowers and a lone tractor, she goes in for a “Slow.” landing. When she picks up a few seeds, the farmer objects with a “No!” and a “Go!” The crow flees the scene and returns to her tree, where story and reader will exclaim as one—“Oh!”—at the realization the seeds weren’t taken due to impishness (well, maybe a little), but rather to feed three open-beaked babies previously tucked out of sight in the nest. As the crow and her chicks settle in together under an indigo sky filled with twinkling stars, contentment emanates from the book’s final pages in a sweet end to the crow’s day.
Go, Crow is a great resource for sparking or supporting interest in our feathered friends, while neatly illuminating similarities between humans and animals, who both must obtain nourishment, fulfill duties, raise young, embrace serenity and more. Kamphuis’ striking illustrations are rife with intriguing textures, soft colors and block print-esque shapes and patterns that call to mind a favorite Yayoi Kusama or Marimekko work of art. Go, Crow is a visually compelling, lovely story to treasure.