Susanna Mattiangeli’s 2019 picture book The Hideout was a pleasant surprise. As a story, it is easily summarized: a girl named Hannah goes to the park for a while…and then comes home. The end.
However, that summary is as unfair as summarizing Where the Wild Things Are by saying it is a story about a boy who is sent to his room for a while, and in fact, this book reminded me of Sendak’s classic. The Hideout would pair well with Where the Wild Things Are. Both books capture the sense from childhood of kids living in a completely personal space, and of becoming decoupled from normal linear time, so an afternoon seems to last forever–or for a second.
I don’t know how long Hannah hid in her refuge in the park. I don’t know if the Odd Furry Creature who makes appearances throughout the book is imaginary, real, or a transformed version of a family pet, like a big dog. And I don’t care. This book does a good job of evoking the wild child in all her wonder, and Felicita Sala’s illustration do a good job of evoking the joy of hiding and splintered visibility of childhood.
