Button by Sara Fanelli (1994) is a quirky book. I love that the illustrations and layout are so unexpected. I picked up a used copy and later learned it was missing a very large round red button that had been attached to the cover. This button is the first of a cast of characters depicted in the first pages of the book even before the copyright page. The text circles the order of each page. Close examination reveals that the text and subsequent pages begin with a text from where the previous page left off. For example, the first two pages of text is a single line that runs across the top and continues down the right hand border. This means that when we turn the page the text is printed upside down along the bottom border. When we turn the page again, the text runs along the left-hand border and then begins across the top.
The illustrations appear to be in part collage. I don’t have the dust jacket to
explain the mixed media. The button begins on a beautiful coat, “ once upon a
time there was a man who had a coat with beautiful red buttons that he liked
very much. But one button decided to see the world. He pulled and stretched and
pulled and ping, he was free.” We read about the button's journey. It became a
play thing for a little girl, fell into a farmers field and became a wheel on
his cart, served as a plate for a wolf, and more. Perhaps it’s the color palette or the
composition that makes this book so darn appealing despite its unusual characters. This is a unique and delightful story that will stay in my own library.
