Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews

A young child discovers a portal to a whole other plane of perspective in Robinson's latest.In the dark of night, a portal opens in a small girl's bedroom, the light attracting her cat. When the curious feline crawls through to chase another cat that looks just like it (but with a different color collar), the little girl cannot help but follow as well. Through the portal, the world goes topsy-turvy—up is down, right is left, and color and shape capriciously collide as the ever smiling girl and her cat move from plane to plane. The duo eventually happens upon other children, all playing with alternate versions of themselves, and after a few page turns, our protagonist—a girl of color with black, beaded braids—spots her alternate self as well. The pair share a few meaningful moments, exchanging smiles and cat toys, until eventually each returns to her bed with the small promise of further adventures to come. The simple geometry of Robinson's work comes alive in this expanse of wordless narrative. A fearless use of white space and an utter disregard of conventions of direction encourage readers to engage with the physical book as the story unfolds, touching and turning it as they literally take the narrative into their hands.A bright, open primer for Escher. (Picture book. 2-5)

ALA Booklist (Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2019)

A small black cat wearing a red collar and an African American girl with colorful baubles in her hair take a peek into another dimension. The cat first notices a white oval that suddenly appears in the child's bedroom as she sleeps. In that oval is an image of an identical black cat wearing a blue collar that enters the girl's room and snaps up a toy mouse lying on the bedroom rug. The child wakes in time to see her pet follow its almost duplicate into the oval, and she, in turn, follows and immediately falls into a black hole, emerging in a topsy-turvy world where things are similar, but not exactly the same, as in her world. The brightly colored illustrations pop against a pure white background. Children, some upright and some upside down, are shown in a variety of clothing and skin colors, partaking in various activities. Is this a parallel universe, or is it all a dream? Readers will decide, and a little blue mouse may help with the final decision.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

A young child discovers a portal to a whole other plane of perspective in Robinson's latest.In the dark of night, a portal opens in a small girl's bedroom, the light attracting her cat. When the curious feline crawls through to chase another cat that looks just like it (but with a different color collar), the little girl cannot help but follow as well. Through the portal, the world goes topsy-turvy—up is down, right is left, and color and shape capriciously collide as the ever smiling girl and her cat move from plane to plane. The duo eventually happens upon other children, all playing with alternate versions of themselves, and after a few page turns, our protagonist—a girl of color with black, beaded braids—spots her alternate self as well. The pair share a few meaningful moments, exchanging smiles and cat toys, until eventually each returns to her bed with the small promise of further adventures to come. The simple geometry of Robinson's work comes alive in this expanse of wordless narrative. A fearless use of white space and an utter disregard of conventions of direction encourage readers to engage with the physical book as the story unfolds, touching and turning it as they literally take the narrative into their hands.A bright, open primer for Escher. (Picture book. 2-5)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Caldecott Honor artist Robinson-s wordless solo debut opens in the middle of the night, when a brown-skinned girl with beaded braids is woken by a disturbance: a black cat that looks just like hers slinks through a glowing hole in her bedroom wall, takes her cat-s mouse toy, and exits. As she and her cat follow, spot illustrations on white spreads show the two in a topsy-turvy journey through portals, over a conveyer belt and Escher-like stairs, and into a ball pit. Eventually, they arrive at a place where children of many ethnicities and appearances play. Each child has -another,- readers see-a double, a twin. Soon, the girl and her cat meet their own doubles, who enter upside down on the opposite page. The girl-s similar returns the toy and the two part happily, order restored. Simple geometric shapes and expanses of empty space make the spreads easy to consider, and Robinson nails the pacing, using each page turn for a comic or conceptual beat. Almost all children wonder whether there are others exactly like them somewhere out in the universe, doing the same thing at exactly the same time. By playing with that idea while juxtaposing similarity and difference, Robinson creates an almost mystical Droste effect of a story that is all mirrors and windows for the group of various children who are offered portals to reach one another. He also creates a speculative world with its own logic, and an adventure that will both puzzle and amuse. Ages 4-8. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Mar.)