Norton and Alpha

by Kristyna Litten

Overview

Meet the adorable robot Norton and his robot-dog Alpha! They’re about to make an amazing discovery . . .
Battered wheels, rusty cogs, broken springs: Norton loves collecting these discarded objects and using them to create the most amazing inventions. But one day he and Alpha come upon something they’ve never seen before: a beautiful flower. At first, they’re baffled . . . but with a little rain, sun, and soil, the flower itself teaches them about the magic of nature. A stunning double gatefold near the end reveals that the seeds scattered from that single flower have blossomed into a whole field full of flowers!
            The quirky illustrations of robots in their futuristic world will engage all kids with their fun sci-fi feel.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781454924999
Publisher:	Sterling Children's Books
Publication date:	03/07/2017
Pages:	44
Sales rank:	324,733
Product dimensions:	9.60(w) x 10.40(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	4 - 18 Years

About the Author

Kristyna Litten studied illustration at Edinburgh College of Art and now lives in a beautiful village in Yorkshire, England. She has illustrated several picture books, including Chickens Can't See in the Dark (Oxford University Press), Blue & Bertie (Simon & Schuster), and Bike on, Bear! (Aladdin). 

Editorial Reviews

“The illustrations have a quirky retro look, and young readers will enjoy and perhaps be inspired by Norton's action as scientist. A quietly amusing fable that highlights the importance of nature in a mechanical world.” —Kirkus Reviews
 

From the Publisher

2017-01-17
What is that strange red object sticking up out of the ground?Norton is a robot who collects objects from the industrial waste ground outside his living quarters. He uses these objects to make new inventions. One day, he finds a small black sphere attached to a curly wire and adds it onto a new entity, a robot dog he names Alpha. The small dog with the perky tail "scurried into small, unreachable places, delved into unexplored spaces…and found all sorts of wonderful things." One day, Alpha leads Norton to "something very unusual." The inquisitive robots "[pluck] it from the ground" and take it home, where Norton tries all his "usual experiments" to determine what the object and its use could be. When he fails, he throws it out the window. One day it rains, and the next day is too hot to go out, but on the third day, what should Norton and Alpha find outside their home but a field full of the objects, in different colors and shapes, attracting butterflies. A gatefold opens to show the wondrous sight, and Norton and Alpha begin to gather these objects—which children will recognize as flowers—and decorate their drab home with them. Norton finally realizes their significance "is that they [make] him smile!" The illustrations have a quirky retro look, and young readers will enjoy and perhaps be inspired by Norton's action as scientist. A quietly amusing fable that highlights the importance of nature in a mechanical world. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews