Thoughts on Public Transportation & My Favorite New Picture Books of 2021: “Milo Imagines the World” and “I am The Subway”
I have used public transportation all my life. Some of my fondest memories as a child took place while riding the bus/train and just watching the world through the window and or the cast of characters on The T. A particularly strong memory is when I used to hop on 71 Bus on Saturday mornings with my mom when she would volunteer at Taxiarchae Greek Orthodox Church in Watertown where we would often meet interesting characters. For instance, there was this man who I only knew as “Howdy Guy” because whenever me and my mom saw him on the bus or the bus stop, he would always say “Howdy” and then we would say howdy back. I think he is the only person in my life who I have ever greeted with “howdy” and even 30 years later if and when I run into him, I say “Howdy.”
I’ve also got to experience the simple joy of a train ride in the city through the eyes of 100s of preschoolers I taught over the years when we would go on the train for field trips to The Boston Public Library, Children’s Museum, and Harvard Museum of Natural History. The simple excitement of seeing something cool out the window like a firetruck or transitioning from a subway tunnel to above ground is is a small joy of childhood that we often lose as we get older that you appreciate when riding on the train with children. Recently, it has been great seeing Boston’s new Mayor Michelle Wu not only prioritize public transportation, but ride The T with her children. A couple years ago, then City Councilor Michelle Wu talked about how riding on public transportation can help young children learn about their community. I bring all this up because while there were plenty of amazing new picture books released in 2021, two books stood out to me and both are primarily set on the subway.
The books are “Milo Imagines the World” by Matt de la Peña (illustrated by Christian Robinson) and “I Am the Subway” by Author & Illustrator: Kim Hyo-eun and translated into English by Deborah Smith. (I am The Subway originally came out a couple years ago in South Korea, but the translated into English version came out in the United States August 2021)
In “I am The Subway” which takes place in The Seoul South Korea’s Subway Network, the story is told from the anthropomorphic subway train’s perspective. However, during the book, train riders get vignettes to tell their own stories. We meet people like Mr. Wanju who is running late for the train or Granny who is bringing fresh fish to her family. When reading a book like this with children, it can spark a million conversations not only about the characters in the book, but about how everyone they see on the subway in their own lives has their own story with hopes, fears, family, and friends too.
Similarly, in “Milo Imagines The World”, Milo sees a variety of people on the subway like “The whiskered man folding up his crossword puzzle”, a group of breakdances, and another young boy who gets on the train wearing bright white Nikes. In each case, Milo imagines about the lives of the people he sees on the train and draws pictures of them. At one point Milo wonders “What do people imagine about his face?” which is a question with a lot of subtext in the context of the story and the context of our society. While not a direct sequel, Milo’s subway ride reminds me of Matt de la Peña’s classic book “Last Stop on Market Street.” Just like, “Last Stop on Market Street”, we don’t know where the destination of Milo’s ride is; I won’t give it away where Milo is going, but it makes the rest of the book more powerful. In addition, with each subsequent reread of the book, you will pick up on subtle aspects of the words and illustrations in the first three quarters of the book, that connect to the ending. The best picture books, reward repeated reading and this type of attention to detail. “I am the Subway” has this level of detail too; when you examine the illustrations, you will notice little things like the, passengers falling asleep, texting on their phones, or the construction going on in the city through the windows.
If I write too much about either book, I am afraid I will give too much away. I’ll end by saying, if you love beautiful illustrations, if you love picture books with layers upon layers of meaning, and most of all, if you love riding on the train, I highly recommend both “Milo Imagines the World” and “I am The Subway” my two favorite new picture books of 2021.
