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Sunday
A boy and his golden dog turn a slow Sunday at home into a magic adventure to faraway places in a picture book celebrating imagination and play.
Martin and his family spend every Sunday together and every Sunday they have the same routine. Not this Sunday, he decides while everyone else watches TV, cooks, and folds laundry.
Instead, Martin invents a world adventure with his dog, Maize, braving extreme cold alongside penguins on ice caps, facing a dragon, confronting pirate ships, and crossing an arid desert on a camel’s back. When he returns from his travels happy and exhausted, he recounts his magical journey with Grandma, who marvels at his courage and wonders where he will go next.
Sunday reminds readers young and old about the power of imagination, play, and dreams coming true. In a world where screens are the default, Martin’s journey detailed in playful line art with bold colors will encourage kids to make their own discoveries and share their creativity with friends and family.
Perfect for rainy-day reading, this book is also a thoughtful gift for grandparents and little readers who love dogs and new experiences.
Martin and his family spend every Sunday together and every Sunday they have the same routine. Not this Sunday, he decides while everyone else watches TV, cooks, and folds laundry.
Instead, Martin invents a world adventure with his dog, Maize, braving extreme cold alongside penguins on ice caps, facing a dragon, confronting pirate ships, and crossing an arid desert on a camel’s back. When he returns from his travels happy and exhausted, he recounts his magical journey with Grandma, who marvels at his courage and wonders where he will go next.
Sunday reminds readers young and old about the power of imagination, play, and dreams coming true. In a world where screens are the default, Martin’s journey detailed in playful line art with bold colors will encourage kids to make their own discoveries and share their creativity with friends and family.
Perfect for rainy-day reading, this book is also a thoughtful gift for grandparents and little readers who love dogs and new experiences.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
March 13, 2025
This book was absolutely beautiful! I LOVED the artwork and the emphasis on the beauty of a child’s imagination. There are some amazing picture books coming out around the world (this is from Brazil)!
November 23, 2025
An only-child is with parents/grandparents for another predictable Sunday. The young boy tries to find one of the adults who isn't busy, but must make up his own adventure with his dog tagging along.
As the boys imagination draws pictures, there is one with pirates that match the clothes his grandmother was hanging up. I felt that this story could have benefited by the other imaginative drawings also matching the activity the adult was doing, but in an adventurous kid-minded way, but they did not.
The story also just has the boy plop down seated on the floor, after the adults ignore him. Then the imaginative pictures appear. Did the child really just sit on the floor and dream this?
A nice ending came when he described his tales to his grandmother, who listened intently.
I just don't feel this would get that "again, again" from the child listening to the adult-reader. Some big adventurous pictures appear mid-book, which might have a child pick up this book in their collection to examine.
While the book highlights the imagination of a lonely child, it will leave the adult reader feeling rather guilty as they see each adult on a lazy Sunday ignoring the possibility of pulling the child into each of their activities.
3.5*
As the boys imagination draws pictures, there is one with pirates that match the clothes his grandmother was hanging up. I felt that this story could have benefited by the other imaginative drawings also matching the activity the adult was doing, but in an adventurous kid-minded way, but they did not.
The story also just has the boy plop down seated on the floor, after the adults ignore him. Then the imaginative pictures appear. Did the child really just sit on the floor and dream this?
A nice ending came when he described his tales to his grandmother, who listened intently.
I just don't feel this would get that "again, again" from the child listening to the adult-reader. Some big adventurous pictures appear mid-book, which might have a child pick up this book in their collection to examine.
While the book highlights the imagination of a lonely child, it will leave the adult reader feeling rather guilty as they see each adult on a lazy Sunday ignoring the possibility of pulling the child into each of their activities.
3.5*
December 28, 2025
Glorious illustrations carry Martin and his big labordor dog Maize, who decide to change it up a bit from the staid Sunday dinners with Mom, Dad, Grandpa, and Grandma, away. Instead, Martin and Maize spend the day traveling the world, and when they return, Grandma is ready to really LISTEN to Martin's stories of the places he visited and the adventures he experienced.
As Tolentino shared with The Nerdy Book Clud, in his personal response about this, his first U.S./translated picture book, "Boredom and Idleness: Essential Elements for Creativity by Marcelo Tolentino", "Some time or another, we all experience that feeling that every day is the same, the same people and places, the same conversation, the same food – and wonder about what if it wasn’t? I wouldn’t trade anything from my childhood. I look back at those Sundays with the same people, the places, and food and am thankful — and hope kids recognize the magic that can come from ordinary aspects of daily life. You never know where those boring days will take you."
The artwork in this picturebook is stunning, inspired during COVID, by the birth of his first child in which he "imagined a little boy who, looking at the lines on his palm, interpreted them as a map and decided to embark on a journey." (from an interview for "Let's Talk Picture Books"). Tolentino began the illustrations in fineliners in a notebook. Later, digital color was added, and the final masterful artwork of each double-page spread, were in ink using crosshatch backgrounded in a vintage palette.
A child's vividly creative imaginings brings everyday objects to life through his celebrated imagination: the father's dragon-tattooed arm becomes a fierce dragon, "sacred creature", his mother's bundt cake, a bursting volcano. And is that grandma's clothespin we see floating next to a pirate ship?
In his interview, Marcelo summarizes, "In the end, knowing that the book found its readers is always deeply gratifying." It certainly has found its reader, Marcelo, yes indeed.
As Tolentino shared with The Nerdy Book Clud, in his personal response about this, his first U.S./translated picture book, "Boredom and Idleness: Essential Elements for Creativity by Marcelo Tolentino", "Some time or another, we all experience that feeling that every day is the same, the same people and places, the same conversation, the same food – and wonder about what if it wasn’t? I wouldn’t trade anything from my childhood. I look back at those Sundays with the same people, the places, and food and am thankful — and hope kids recognize the magic that can come from ordinary aspects of daily life. You never know where those boring days will take you."
The artwork in this picturebook is stunning, inspired during COVID, by the birth of his first child in which he "imagined a little boy who, looking at the lines on his palm, interpreted them as a map and decided to embark on a journey." (from an interview for "Let's Talk Picture Books"). Tolentino began the illustrations in fineliners in a notebook. Later, digital color was added, and the final masterful artwork of each double-page spread, were in ink using crosshatch backgrounded in a vintage palette.
A child's vividly creative imaginings brings everyday objects to life through his celebrated imagination: the father's dragon-tattooed arm becomes a fierce dragon, "sacred creature", his mother's bundt cake, a bursting volcano. And is that grandma's clothespin we see floating next to a pirate ship?
In his interview, Marcelo summarizes, "In the end, knowing that the book found its readers is always deeply gratifying." It certainly has found its reader, Marcelo, yes indeed.
May 28, 2025
In Marcelo Tolentino’s picture book, Sunday, a routine family gathering turns into a global adventure for one imaginative boy and his canine companion.
In young Martin’s family, Sundays are a tradition with the same people and the same food, week after week. The grown-ups enjoyed the familiar custom, but Martin wanted more. He wanted adventure. So on this Sunday, while grandpa, grandma, mom, and dad were busy doing their adult things—like laundry, cooking, and resting in front of the television—Martin and his dog Maize set out on a world adventure.
From volcanoes to ice caps, deserts to rainforests, riding camels to embarking pirate ships, this pair of explorers left no stone unturned. And after courageously making their way home, exhausted from their extraordinary exploits, they regale their family with how this marvelous and magical Sunday was like no other.
With the timeless feel of beloved children’s books of an earlier era, Marcelo Tolentino’s Sunday is reminiscent of the wild imagination of Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are and the nostalgic illustrations of Don Freeman’s Corduroy. While families will relate to the simplicity of enjoyed customs such as generational family dinners, young readers will delight in the clever and creative journey of a young boy and his dog. Tolentino brings a masterfully measured succinctness to the text that allows the beautifully childlike imagination of the story to marvelously unfold.
Families and educators of young children will welcome this enduring tale as a playful read-aloud they can return to again and again. Each spread is a story unto itself, with small details to be found anew with each reading. Sunday is a worthy read that celebrates the wonder of imagination, the traditions of family, and the treasure that is childhood.
In young Martin’s family, Sundays are a tradition with the same people and the same food, week after week. The grown-ups enjoyed the familiar custom, but Martin wanted more. He wanted adventure. So on this Sunday, while grandpa, grandma, mom, and dad were busy doing their adult things—like laundry, cooking, and resting in front of the television—Martin and his dog Maize set out on a world adventure.
From volcanoes to ice caps, deserts to rainforests, riding camels to embarking pirate ships, this pair of explorers left no stone unturned. And after courageously making their way home, exhausted from their extraordinary exploits, they regale their family with how this marvelous and magical Sunday was like no other.
With the timeless feel of beloved children’s books of an earlier era, Marcelo Tolentino’s Sunday is reminiscent of the wild imagination of Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are and the nostalgic illustrations of Don Freeman’s Corduroy. While families will relate to the simplicity of enjoyed customs such as generational family dinners, young readers will delight in the clever and creative journey of a young boy and his dog. Tolentino brings a masterfully measured succinctness to the text that allows the beautifully childlike imagination of the story to marvelously unfold.
Families and educators of young children will welcome this enduring tale as a playful read-aloud they can return to again and again. Each spread is a story unto itself, with small details to be found anew with each reading. Sunday is a worthy read that celebrates the wonder of imagination, the traditions of family, and the treasure that is childhood.
March 28, 2026
Originally published in 2023 in Brazil as Domingo, this translation by Rahul Bery retains most of the soul and heart of the original book – one of seeing and being seen. One of the New York Times Best Illustrated Books of 2025.
Every Sunday is always the same – grandparents come for a visit and dinner, where they rehash the same topics each time. Martin decides to do something different. Since all the grownups were preoccupied, he and his dog Maize step out into the “world”, where they see “great and wonderful things”. A close look at each place shows it is not quite what it appears to be. The castle pass by is a 3-gallon tea dispenser. The frozen ice caps appear to be made from eggs, milk, and food in the fridge. The lava is flowing from a lava cake. The dragon is a tatoo on his father’s arm. The desert is his grandfather’s face. The fertile forest is the plants in the room the laundry is put out on a drying line. The pirate ship’s sails are his grandmother’s laundry. When he tells his grandmother about his adventures, it is she who looks deeply in his eyes to see his soul.
Brief, lyrical text beautifully conveys this imaginative story about a boy who is able to entertain himself. It is the illustrations themselves that are imaginative and carry the most magic. The artwork is exquisite, carefully done with what appears to be pencil and in, then digitally colored. The textures are lush, the colors more limited to duller shades of color – red, olive green, grey, lilac, golden orange, and peach (for skin tones).
This is one to look closely and savor the details. Give this to the kid with a vivid imagination that loves to study art deeply.
Highly Recommended for PreS-grade 2.
Every Sunday is always the same – grandparents come for a visit and dinner, where they rehash the same topics each time. Martin decides to do something different. Since all the grownups were preoccupied, he and his dog Maize step out into the “world”, where they see “great and wonderful things”. A close look at each place shows it is not quite what it appears to be. The castle pass by is a 3-gallon tea dispenser. The frozen ice caps appear to be made from eggs, milk, and food in the fridge. The lava is flowing from a lava cake. The dragon is a tatoo on his father’s arm. The desert is his grandfather’s face. The fertile forest is the plants in the room the laundry is put out on a drying line. The pirate ship’s sails are his grandmother’s laundry. When he tells his grandmother about his adventures, it is she who looks deeply in his eyes to see his soul.
Brief, lyrical text beautifully conveys this imaginative story about a boy who is able to entertain himself. It is the illustrations themselves that are imaginative and carry the most magic. The artwork is exquisite, carefully done with what appears to be pencil and in, then digitally colored. The textures are lush, the colors more limited to duller shades of color – red, olive green, grey, lilac, golden orange, and peach (for skin tones).
This is one to look closely and savor the details. Give this to the kid with a vivid imagination that loves to study art deeply.
Highly Recommended for PreS-grade 2.
January 25, 2025
A very quick read, this shows a child's imagination – or more precisely, what happens in his mind when he takes the dog on an adventure while the rest of the family have a most unedifying afternoon at his grandparents'. Very succinctly described by text, the visuals are the key here – as the travails of the pair involve a lot of landscapes that look like the food in the house, or tattoos and faces of people present. In fact the impetus for his imagination is really nicely woven into things, even if it does leave an old woman laundering a most unlikely T-shirt. But of course, even after you've been so imaginative with your fantasies of pirates and lava-filled landscapes, nobody is going to be on board with your dream world – are they?
I've seen copious books that show the wonders, merits and breadth and depth of junior imaginations – but I think this is the best of them all. It's just nicely, quietly clever, really well-designed, quick with the wit (the dog doing what dogs do in the mahoosive jungle as if it's not bothered at all by the size of it) – and heck, even the boy and dog relationship is adding a nice layer. So roll on Sundays, and the chance to live a life like the kid here! I normally leave 5 star reviews to the 'pack 'em on a space ship and send them to the stars to show what we're all about' kind of quality books, but I can't see any flaws here, so the maximum it is.
I've seen copious books that show the wonders, merits and breadth and depth of junior imaginations – but I think this is the best of them all. It's just nicely, quietly clever, really well-designed, quick with the wit (the dog doing what dogs do in the mahoosive jungle as if it's not bothered at all by the size of it) – and heck, even the boy and dog relationship is adding a nice layer. So roll on Sundays, and the chance to live a life like the kid here! I normally leave 5 star reviews to the 'pack 'em on a space ship and send them to the stars to show what we're all about' kind of quality books, but I can't see any flaws here, so the maximum it is.
December 21, 2024
It’s a Sunday like all the others, and Martin and his parents are having dinner with Grandpa and Grandma. But Martin decides that THIS Sunday will be different: “This Sunday, he was going to travel the world.” All of the grownups are busy, so Martin steps out with his dog Maize into adventures all over the world and beyond. He travels to the Arctic; he nears the heat of a spewing volcano; he encounters mythical beasts and crosses paths with pirates. At the end, Grandma listens to every word of his adventures.
You may have guessed that Martin uses his imagination to find the adventures he seeks. What’s clever is that everyday objects from home pictured on the preceding pages become part of his fantastical adventures. The cake Mom was baking becomes the volcano; one of Dad’s tattoos is mythical creature; the arid desert is the face of his dozing grandpa. There will be laughter at some – Grandpa’s tightie whities become part of a pirate flag! Young readers will love connecting these imagined images with the everyday and watching Martin and Maize on their epic journey. Brief descriptive text and beautifully wrought artwork that resembles scratchboard illustration will make this creative, interactive offering a fun and different read each time.
You may have guessed that Martin uses his imagination to find the adventures he seeks. What’s clever is that everyday objects from home pictured on the preceding pages become part of his fantastical adventures. The cake Mom was baking becomes the volcano; one of Dad’s tattoos is mythical creature; the arid desert is the face of his dozing grandpa. There will be laughter at some – Grandpa’s tightie whities become part of a pirate flag! Young readers will love connecting these imagined images with the everyday and watching Martin and Maize on their epic journey. Brief descriptive text and beautifully wrought artwork that resembles scratchboard illustration will make this creative, interactive offering a fun and different read each time.
November 28, 2024
This book is really quite simple, but it's still awesome! There were two things that I really enjoyed about this book, and zero things I disliked.
1. The tone/meaning. This book highly encourages little ones to use their imaginations and explore the world around them. The author accurately and beautifully marries these two ideas to make one utterly flawless lesson for the overall book. Even though it isn't mentioned often, the power of adventure and creativity is so, so important. The author of this book definitely recognizes this and teaches it to kids.
2. The illustrations. Wow, wow, WOW! Due to the illustrations, this book is just *bursting* with life. The illustrator definitely found the perfect balance between detail and fun. Nothing was overwhelming, but there was just enough detail within each page spread to maintain the reader's interest and give them a reason to dwell just a bit longer than one normally would. I can't completely express the talent of the illustrator in words, so I will just say this: read it for yourself!
1. The tone/meaning. This book highly encourages little ones to use their imaginations and explore the world around them. The author accurately and beautifully marries these two ideas to make one utterly flawless lesson for the overall book. Even though it isn't mentioned often, the power of adventure and creativity is so, so important. The author of this book definitely recognizes this and teaches it to kids.
2. The illustrations. Wow, wow, WOW! Due to the illustrations, this book is just *bursting* with life. The illustrator definitely found the perfect balance between detail and fun. Nothing was overwhelming, but there was just enough detail within each page spread to maintain the reader's interest and give them a reason to dwell just a bit longer than one normally would. I can't completely express the talent of the illustrator in words, so I will just say this: read it for yourself!
March 12, 2025
The spare prose perfectly complements the illustrations. Sometimes I think the best picture books are written and illustrated by the same person. Together they tell a much more nuanced story of a Sunday with Grandma and Grandpa, Mom and Dad, and the dog. It's when we do things every Sunday that our imaginations can grab us and take us on all sorts of adventures. I was lucky to have grown up with those kinds of Sundays (though they were filled with cousins and Aunts and Uncles too).
To me, the cover illustration doesn't represent the totality of the book. The illustrations inside are much more expansive.
To me, the cover illustration doesn't represent the totality of the book. The illustrations inside are much more expansive.
May 6, 2025
Martin and his family spend every Sunday together and every Sunday they have the same routine. Not this Sunday, he decides while everyone else watches TV, cooks, and folds laundry. Instead, Martin invents a world adventure with his dog, Maize, braving extreme cold alongside penguins on ice caps, facing a dragon, confronting pirate ships, and crossing an arid desert on a camel's back. When he returns from his travels happy and exhausted, he recounts his magical journey with Grandma, who marvels at his courage and wonders where he will go next.
December 14, 2024
I appreciate the story of a boy who can create his own adventure while the remainder of the family is busy, but also gets one on one time with a caring adult at the end. It's a realistic portrayal of a busy loving household. I don't find the illustrations to be particularly friendly to young children, but they are fascinating to search for clues as to where in the house the child and dog might be. They contribute to the dreamy feeling of the book.
March 22, 2025
Martin's family follows the same routine every Sunday but he longs for something different. He decides to set out on an adventure with his dog instead of the family time together. Readers travel with them to many places and experience all sorts of areas on our planet. The illustrations capture the adventures and let readers connect with the journey. I love how his grandmother listens to his adventures and encourages him to continue exploring.
September 3, 2025
The illustrations are lovely and atmospheric, but KIDS SHOULD NOT SIT ON OR RIDE DOGS. Maybe this was supposed to be part of the main character's imagination, but it seemed to me like this was what came right before and after the imaginary parts. Regardless, there's no commentary within the story to indicate that it's not normal or okay to take a ride on a dog.
October 11, 2025
A family gathers for a typical Sunday together. A young child complains that every Sunday is the same. Every person in the family does the exact same thing every Sunday. This Sunday the child decides to take the family dog with them on exciting adventures using only their imagination.
Whimsical with bold illustrations using a muted palette.
Whimsical with bold illustrations using a muted palette.
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December 5, 2025Not sure about this for storytime. Pictures are gorgeous, the length is right, but not sure if kids will pick up on subtle clues that the adventures are imaginary (especially that the dragon is dad's tattoo because I had to flip around to catch that). Would be good for a lapsit read with an older kid - recommend to Kat and Liesl.
March 12, 2025
5 Stars up from 4 for the illustration that are marvelous. I love how the things in the early pictures become parts of the boy and his dogs adventure. The art was detailed and you could spend an hour looking at the pictures.
March 9, 2026
(E) 03.08.2026: while recommended as one of the 10 best Illustrated in 2025, initially it was listed as not available from my buying source, then it arrived at our doorstep in late Feb. '26...graphics are without a doubt wonderful, the prose: not so much, hence the lower rating.
January 27, 2025
Talk about stunning!
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February 22, 2025such a delight capture of family rituals
March 15, 2025
One of the first picture books of 2025 for me, this is an imaginative masterpiece.
May 31, 2025
A grandmother recognizes the potential for great things in the adventures of a young imaginative boy on an average Sunday.
August 12, 2025
The art was beautiful, but the story wasn't anything to rave over.
August 26, 2025
This has to be inspired by Christ Van Allsburg stories in exploration!
My type to highlight adventures and longings to travel!
My type to highlight adventures and longings to travel!
November 17, 2025
The DOG!!! Tolentino captured the personality of the dog so well. I loved that it was the grandmother who listened to the stories of all Martin's imaginary adventures.
November 24, 2025
This is a charming book that transforms an ordinary, predictable Sunday into something much more.
December 11, 2025
A beautiful story of an imaginative adventure.
December 19, 2025
Gorgeous illustrations!
December 20, 2025
A brilliant imagination can salvage an ordinary, lonely day.
June 18, 2025
What a sad story about a little boy whose extended family can’t bother to give him the time of day. He sets off to fantastic imaginal realms with his dog to pass the time until Sunday isn’t Sunday anymore. Is Grandma really listening to his travelogue, or is she wondering why the walls of their home are the color of discontent? Does he see all the storylines of sorrow in her face, the rivulets of tears, the fragments of shattered dreams in her eyes?
January 14, 2025
A gorgeously drawn book whose story takes place in the protagonist’s imagination. Martin and Maize, his dog, seeking a change from the ordinary, find places to go one Sunday. Everyone else in the family is busy, so off they go on their own to see ice caps, lava flows, dragons, and more. Their adventurous Sunday is a huge success.
Very highly recommend this sweet book. Thanks to Blue Dot and Edelweiss for early access.
Very highly recommend this sweet book. Thanks to Blue Dot and Edelweiss for early access.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews