#685 of 1001 · June 16, 2022

What does your name mean to you and your family? That simple but eternally relevant question informs the spirit of Knots on a Counting Rope, written by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault and illustrated by Ted Rand. A boy begs his grandfather for a story—the story of the boy’s own birth, of the inspiration behind his name, of meeting and training his very own horse, and of a subsequent horse race. When the story is done, the grandfather ties yet another knot on the counting rope, which, when full, will indicate that the boy knows the story by heart and can tell it himself. Martin and Archambault’s vivid back-and-forth dialogue without surrounding narration provides a thoughtful treatment of the boy’s experience with blindness, as well as his patience and strength. Rand’s rich-hued illustrations create a powerful sense of place, emotion, and tradition. #rope #name #horse #horses #blind #family #story #stories #storyteller #storytelling #book #books #childrensbooks #picturebook #picturebooks #picturebookart #childrensbookillustration #childrensliterature #illustration #kidlit #kidsbooks #bookworm #booklover #booklovers #bibliophile #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagrammers #instabook #instabooks