A New Day for Umwell the Gray

March 15, 2023
It's another dull day...until something new happens. William's world, his thoughts, and even his clothes are gray. His aunt teases that one day his hair will turn gray, but he continues to mope, bored that everything is always the same. Then a girl in a purple raincoat appears at the window and introduces herself as Purple. Taken aback, William stumbles when she asks him his name ("Um...well"), so Purple calls him Umwell. A sort of Manic Pixie Dream Girl, Purple takes him on a walk through the trees and to the beach as she demonstrates how nothing, not the water in a stream or falling leaves, is ever precisely the same from one moment to the next. They fly kites, examine starfish, and discover how even people change from day to day. Jenks explores several related themes--the healing power of nature, coming out of a somber mood, altering one's perspective--that all work in tandem here. Though the friendship is a bit one-sided, with Purple existing seemingly only to inspire William, it's a tale that will have many readers opening their own eyes. Evans' delicate illustrations use color to indicate how Purple has enriched William's world. By the end, though the boy still sports his gray raincoat, the once monochromatic, grayish-blue world has filled with more vibrant hues. William presents Asian; Purple is Black. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Spirited revelations. (Picture book. 3-8)

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April 15, 2023
Preschool-Grade 2 Not only does William live in a gray world with gray thoughts, a gray sky, and gray clothes, but his aunt suggests that all his moping will give him gray hair, too. Gray, washed-out watercolors with blue undertones reflect his ongoing mood, and William's dark hair and eyes contrast with the unnatural white of his skin. The dreariness of this particular rainy day changes when he spies a brown-skinned girl wearing a purple, polka-dotted poncho. When William hesitates ("Um . . . well") when telling the girl (aptly named Purple) his own name, she begins calling him Umwell the Gray. William follows Purple through the woods and to a beach, and, along the way, she encourages him to find the beauty, or the "new," in his surroundings, from falling leaves to the waves at the shore. In response, the hopeful illustrations depict more color as William, a healthy pink entering his skin, eventually finds newness in himself. The book's intentional ambiguity makes it adaptable for discussing depression, loneliness, or grief. A good selection for SEL collections.

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