The Gray City – Perfect Picture Book Friday

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I reviewed Torben Kuhlmann’s first book, Lindbergh: The Tale of a Flying Mouse, in 2014. Note that while that review mentions the Caldecott quality of his illustrations, Kuhlmann doesn’t actually qualify, because he’s not a U.S. citizen or resident.

Kuhlmann’s latest picture book, THE GRAY CITY, is more of a chapter book or illustrated storybook, with sections of text on white pages interspersed with full pages of illustrations, and sometimes several illustration spreads in a row.

The tale is an allegory, where those in power in the Gray City deem shades of gray to be the only acceptable colors. It is a place where you get into trouble if you don’t conform in every way. Just looking at that vast grayness cues the ennui and despair.

When a young girl named Robin moves to the Gray City with her father and then heads off to her first day at a new school, she’s the only one wearing anything that’s not a shade of gray. Her yellow raincoat stands out from the crowd. Uh oh. At the end of the day, she’s sent to detention, where she must watch an old film titled Desirable Social Behavior: Conformity, Obedience, Discipline. Propaganda, anyone?

You know that Kuhlmann is German, right? So are my ancestors and my father-in-law, and well, this kind of hit home. My father-in-law, however, was a contrarian and pretty much flouted all rules, LOL. But I digress…

Robin meets a boy, Alani, the only other kid in detention, and they become fast friends as they’re both nonconformists. The boy loves color and singing in the hallways, completely unacceptable behavior. When Robin stumbles across other nonconformists (musicians, a singer, a comedian, and a librarian!!!—shout out to amazing librarians) and then is confronted by an ominous man with the title Curator for Social Welfare who demands she conform, Robin becomes determined to solve the mystery of the Gray City.

Yes, all those colorful books you see in the illustration below are hidden behind a fake gray library storefront! I’m including a spread to give you an idea of what the text looks like.

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Note the reflected yellow on the tubes of gray paint, from Robin’s rainjacket in the illustration below. Love those details!

Robin discovers clues, including one from the ominous man’s business card. Armed with these clues, she and Alani find the source of grayness and commit sabotage to bring color back to the city.

Turns out the only gray thing left in the city will be Robin’s cat, Heinz, LOL.

Back matter, stamped with a “Confidential” warning, explains light refraction and the process of mixing colors, something near and dear to an illustrator’s heart.

This would be a good book for a short classroom read aloud or for those kids who are independent readers and not intimidated by large blocks of text. The 11 chapters run anywhere from 1/2 to 2 1/2 pages, with 1 1/2 being most frequent. Just one spread is text only. This book would make a lovely introduction to a science unit on light and color, or for discussing the importance of all kinds of diversity.

Activities:

Check out light and color-related science “snacks” created by the Exploratorium in San Francisco.

Write a poem from the perspective of someone who lives in the GRAY CITY. Then write a poem from the perspective of someone who lives in a colorful world. What word choices do you make to emphasize the difference? For example, would someone from the Gray City be gloomy and depressed, whereas someone from a colorful, diverse place would be excited and enthusiastic?

Title: The Gray City

Author/Illustrator: Torben Kuhlmann

Publisher: NorthSouth Books, 2024

Themes: nonconformity, color

Ages: Elementary school

For more perfect picture book recommendations, please visit Susanna Hill’s website.