The Liszts

by Kyo Maclear, Júlia Sardà (Illustrator)

The Liszts make lists. They make lists most usual and lists most unusual. They make lists in winter, spring, summer and fall. They make lists every day except Sundays, which are listless. Mama Liszt, Papa Liszt, Winifred, Edward, Frederick and Grandpa make lists all day long. So does their cat. Then one day a visitor arrives. He's not on anyone's list. Will the Liszts be able to make room on their lists for this new visitor? How will they handle something unexpected arising? Kyo Maclear's quirky, whimsical story, perfectly brought to life with the witty, stylish illustrations of Júlia Sardà, is a humorous and poignant celebration of spontaneity.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Family, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Art, Humor

40 pages, Hardcover

First published October 4, 2016

About the author

Kyo Maclear is an essayist, novelist and children’s author. She was born in London, England and moved to Toronto at the age of four with her British father (a foreign correspondent and documentary filmmaker) and Japanese mother (a painter and art dealer).

Her books have been translated into eighteen languages, published in over twenty-five countries, and garnered nominations from the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction, the Governor General’s Literary Awards, the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Awards, the Amazon.ca First Novel Award, the National Magazine Awards, among other honours.

Unearthing: a Story of Tangled Love and Family Secrets (2023) was a national bestseller and awarded the Governor General’s Literary Award for Nonfiction. Her hybrid memoir Birds Art Life (2017) was a #1 National Bestseller and winner of the Trillium Book Award and the Nautilus Book Award for Lyrical Prose. It was named one of the best books of 2017 by The Globe and Mail, CBC, Now Magazine, the National Post, Forbes, the Chicago Review of Books, and Book Riot.

Her work has appeared in Orion Magazine, Brick, Border Crossings, The Millions, LitHub, The Volta, Prefix Photo, Resilience, The Guardian, Lion’s Roar, Azure, The Globe and Mail, and elsewhere. She has been a national arts reviewer for Canadian Art and a monthly arts columnist for Toronto Life.

Kyo holds a doctorate in environmental humanities teaches creative writing with The Humber School for Writers and the University of Guelph Creative Writing MFA.

She lives in Tkaronto/Toronto, on the traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the New Credit, the Haudenosaunee, Métis, and the Huron-Wendat.

Reviews

[Hannah Greendale (Hello, Bookworm) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Odd in the most delightful way. A peculiar family that makes peculiar lists until their routine is interrupted by an unexpected guest. A beautiful story of spontaneity packed with intricate illustrations and little pops of humor. Absolutely love this!

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a lot of fun and the illustrations are amazing. My only complaint is that it does have anything to do with Liszt, as far as I can tell. Therefore it falls short of some of her other famous-people-pun-titles such as Virginia Wolf which manage to be relevant to the person's biography as well as whatever other idea struck the author.

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book for older children (independent readers) and adults.

I think that it’s kind of brilliant.

I read it because of the illustrations and they are glorious. Gorgeous. Intricate. Complex. Fun.

As a list maker (my mother was also a list maker) I really appreciated the quirky story. I love what I think is the message too, to leave room for spontaneity and things that aren’t already on the list(s).

So many funny lines (Sundays were listless. ha ha) and I love that the cat makes lists too, including viewing the list from the cat at the beginning of the book.

If you count reading the lists the Lizsts make, the book is text heavy for a picture book.

I loved this one.

If I look at it even remotely realistically, the unexpected thing that does come up is creepy and scary, but I took the entire story as tongue in cheek.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Add The Liszts to our list of Kyo Maclear books with punning titles that are references to famous people, gorgeously illustrated books by a couple of my favorite illustrators, Isabelle Arsenault (Virginia Wolf, about the author Virginia Woolf and her sister, Vanessa Bell) and Julia, Child with Julie Morsand (you guessed it!). So imagine my profound disappointment as I read and reread this book for clues to Franz Liszt and find list after list but no Liszt on any list (whew!). Feel cheated, much? Well, a little, though MacLear has again found an amazing artist to help her tell her story, Sardà, Júlia.

I invite any interested reader he who knows the Liszt story and find any biographical reference to Franz or his family, but I just don't see it or maybe know his story well enough.

The art and story are still MacLear-ically quirky, with all members of the family obsessively making lists, of course, learning along the way that a new acquaintance NOT on any of their lists jus might qualify as a friend. But you see, this story doesn't add up to much, so my rating is under a 4, really, though will round up for the art, and for the somewhat Gorey-like creepiness.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just loved the art in this clever children’s book. The Liszts, a family of compulsive list-makers with each member having a different peculiar interest, reminded me of the Royal Tenenbaums. The arrival of a mysterious visitor encourages them to leave room at the bottom of their lists for spontaneity. Favorite line: “They made lists every day except Sundays, which were listless.” Releases October 4th.

[Manybooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I originally added Kyo Maclear's The Liszts to my Goodreads "Mount to Be Read" I was (erroneously it turns out) from the book title expecting that at least part of the author's presented story would feature a tie-in to both classical music and also to one of my favourite composers, Franz Liszt. And indeed, I was and still remain more than a bit personally disappointed that this has not at all been the case with The Liszts, that it is simply a quirky little picture book about a family where everyone makes list after list after list (for while I can certainly appreciate the punny title, I still would much prefer having The Liszts be a story about classical music and Franz Liszt the composer).

And well, while I did at least somewhat enjoy reading about (and was smiling at) how dedicated the Liszts are with regard to making their whole and entire life into a series of both short and long lists, personally, I for one have also kind of felt as thought the author, as though Kyo Maclear is really and even a bit nastily at times deliberately poking fun and making the family look rather ridiculous in The Liszts. And no, this does not sit at all well with me on an emotional level (for I myself do have the tendency to quite religiously list my appointments, my things to do and to purchase, my likes, dislikes, favourite books, favourite animal species and so on and so on and I have actually also rather too often been told that I am much too obsessive with regard to this, with regard to making lists, and have therefore actually found The Liszts not all that humorous in and of itself and actually kind of like a personal barb directed squarely at me, even though I am sure that this has in no way been Kyo Maclear's intention). Combined with the fact that I am furthermore just not on an aesthetic level all that much a fan of Julia Sardá's accompanying artwork (finding it expressive and colourful but generally much too relentlessly dark and visually creepy for my personal tastes and for no apparent reason either, as I for one do not think that Kyo Maclear's Liszt family is supposed to resemble the Addams Family), I really cannot consider more than two stars for The Lists (even though I do seem to be the minority amongst especially my Goodreads friends).

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just under 4 stars for me. Good illustrations in a cross between art deco and the yellow submarine style, I liked the colour scheme but perhaps a little dark and sombre for a young reader. Lots of detail in the artwork, lots to look at. The idea of making lists was interesting, it was good to see Radiohead's Hail to the Thief there but surely Liszt could have been metioned! It did show a couple of their lists but I would like to have seen more and it was begging to have a couple of nicely decorated pages at the end to add some lists of your own. I felt the plot was slightly lacking.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations are absolutely wonderful, and the premise really promising, but the outcome was somehow lacking. Who is the stranger? What is he doing at the Liszts'? I was expecting a different resolution.

I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Dov Zeller · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art is, as one gr reviewer puts it, "glorious." The storyline a bit inconsistent and doesn't really pull together in a way that makes sense. It's got a touch of Edward Gorey, which I think makes it endearing to me. But Gorey relishes absurdity while engaged, in his way, in conversation with conventional narrative forms. This book seems more interested in style than narrative, and wordplay for its own sake.

I read this a month or two ago and sent it back to the library before writing this review. May get it out again, in which case, perhaps a more detailed review to come?

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Left me feeling listless, like the family's Sundays. Why do they not make lists on Sunday? Why does a stranger and his liveliness appeal only to the middle child?

Why is there so much black and gray, even on the pages in which Edward and the stranger have adventures? The movie Wizard of Oz did B&W vs. Color perfectly; I don't know why modern artists feel like that concept needs to 'improved.'

Maybe if I struggled more with a compulsion to find a balance between organizing & controlling all the details of my life and living heedlessly in the moment... maybe then this would mean something more to me. Meanwhile, I have my list of books here on Goodreads, and my grocery list, and that's enough thank you.

[Vikki VanSickle · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could redecorate my apartment based on the style and palette of any children's book it would be this one. What a gorgeous jewel-toned, art-deco inspired world Julia Sarda has created for this story. As always, Maclear is in top form in a story about a family of obsessive list-makers who find their routines thrown off by the arrival of a stranger and his less than A type tendencies. A tad Addams family goth, a tad Wes Anderson, this is a stand-out book in terms of story and design.

[Carrie Gelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh this book - illustrations are stunning, the story is quirky and it prompted all kinds of wild list making!

[Elizabeth A · Rating 3 out of 5]

This children's picture book is about a family that makes lists. Everyone, including the cat, makes lists particular to their own interests. One day a stranger who is not on anyone's lists appears. Who is he and what does he want?

I really like the art and color palatte in this one, and the story is cute, but there are unresolved questions in my mind. Why were Sundays listless and who is that stranger? I did like the connection the stranger made with Edward, the middle child. If you are part of the "listers gotta list" part of the population, you'll appreciate the gentle humor in this one.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reminded me a lot of Edward Gorey, except the Doubtful Guest in this situation is more of a wanted guest and is very welcome in the Liszts' household and no one dies morbidly at the end of the picture book. Also a lot of Edward Gorey's plots don't make any sense and aren't supposed to, and I don't know whether I was supposed to make sense of this picture book, but I'm going to assume not.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely illustrations about a list-loving, list-making family, the Liszts, and the stranger who arrives, and is not easily categorized by the family's lists.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a beautifully illustrated picture-book. Attention to detail in pictures draws your eye in and allows you to see much more than might normally be in ordinary picture book. So, three stars for the illustrations.

The story, however, seems a odd choice for a picture book. It seems to be more a message for adults that have to adhere to lists, and duties and have no room for the unexpected. I am not aware of children who behave like that and if there are any, they wouldn't be reading picture books.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Daisy May Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully complex and dark, The Liszts is a picture book that stands at the edge of a thousand different classifications. It's poetry, it's art, it's story, and throughout all of that, it's a quiet instruction to value the arrival of the unexpected and the different within your life. The Liszt family make lists: "lists most usual / and lists most unusual". These may range from "lists of dreaded chores / and small winged insects" through to "lists that went on for 31 pges / lists to quiet the swirl of his midnight mind". One day a "visitor" arrives and makes friends with Edward, the middle child. The two of them find a friendship in each other centred around questions delivered in vibrant, thick capitals: "Does anyone own the moon or the sky? / Where do my thoughts come from?". The book ends with an echo of the opening, "The Liszts kept making lists. Scritch, scractch, / They made lists most usual. And lists most unusual" but this time, the visitor is there in the scene, reading a list of his own.

It's not a particularly clean and simple book this which is one of its great strength. The Visitor himself shifts from the perspective of something quite unworldly and odd to something almost benign and it's hard to think through just what or who he's meant to be. But perhaps, really, this is one of those books that thrives on that indeterminacy, of asking children to ascribe feelings and motivation to the incomprehensible edge of life and to try and understand those things with rough edges and less than straightforward intent. The Liszts does, I suspect, lean more to the older edge of the picture book market, but again that's no bad thing. It's a book that is beautifully produced but also one which thrives on an almost Gothic edge of otherness, something you might see in Neil Gaiman's work or Chris Riddell. That edge of the world where things aren't straightforward, but they are.

Artistically, this book is a joy. Sarda illustrates this book with a gleefully weird, almost 1920s edge where the ladies wear turbans and the gentlemen have great and splendid beards. Butterflies are pinned onto the wall, whilst characters sunbathe next to an empty swimming pool, scattered with leaves and detritus. It is a dark, odd, wonderful book this with images that fill the page and defy expectation or predictability. My only slight tinge of doubt is with the font; it's one of those wobbly hand-written, scratchy jobs that is a little bit difficult to read at times. Aesthetically it's perfect, yet it would push The Liszts again to that upper edge of the picture book market. But that upper edge is a wonderful, dark, perfect space for this book to inhabit. It doesn't tie everything off neatly, nor does it place itself squarely into a frame of expectation. It's not easy to classify, nor is it easy to predict. It is weird, delightfully so, exuberantly so, and it is beautiful.

My thanks to Andersen for the review copy.

[ElphaReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very surreal and strange book, but I really liked it. Perhaps that should be 'so I obviously liked it'. The artwork is excellent and the concept is dreamy and outside the box.

[Marissa Elera · Rating 5 out of 5]

This quirky, funky picture book brings deep joy to my soul. I was gasping in admiration from the very first page.

[Samuel Tyler · Rating 3 out of 5]

When you read enough children’s books you start to be able to pick up patterns in the genre. There are books that are aimed at the child alone and alienate the adult and there are those that cater for both. Perhaps the oddest grouping is those children’s books that are seemingly designed for adults to enjoy and do not appeal to children.

‘The Liszts’ are a family of obsessive list makers. They write down everything in list form. So obsessed with lists are they that they have stopped seeing the world around them. When a stranger comes to visit, rather than invite him in, they carry on with their lists. It is up to this stranger and the youngest member of the Liszt family to actually do something on the lists, rather than just creating more of them.

The idea behind ‘‘The Liszts’’ by Kyo Maclear should work as a children’s book as it is all about paying attention to what is around you and not just concentrating on one thing. In this day and age of tablet computing it is not too far a reach to see that children should look up once in a while and enjoy the world outside their pad. Therefore, at the centre of events, this book has something worthwhile to tell, but why Maclear went about it the way they did is strange to say the least.

The style of ‘‘The Liszts’’ has more than a touch of the Wes Andersons about it and in particular his film ‘‘The Royal Tenenbaums’’. Each characters is introduced surrounded by their interests and the images almost feel like a still from an Anderson film. What is unique to this book is Júlia Sardà’s art style. Each page is jam packed with things to look at all in glorious colour and with a unique style. But is this actually appealing to the audience?

As an adult I can appreciate the look and feel of this book. The hardback is exquisite and the drawings are magnificent, but the surface is only part of what a children’s book should be. Whilst Sardà has done a wonderful job realising Maclear’s vision, it is the author who confuses things. The moral of the story is a little garbled. You don’t really know why the stranger came and you don’t really feel that the family have learnt much from the adventure.

There is an also an issue with what child should read the book. The text is quite sparse so would traditionally appeal to the very early emerging reader, but the dark look and slightly confused story means that only an older child would be able to pick up on the subtleties to understand what is happening, although they may find the book has too few words. ‘‘The Liszts’’ is the type of book that a good meaning parent would buy a child thinking it looks fantastic, but is lacks the charm and brightness that most children like from their books. Perhaps this is truly a children’s book written for adults?

[Nicole Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

"They made lists every day except Sundays,
which were listless."
A simple story but really fun. I love the encouragement of curiosity and the kinds of questions posed later in the story. I might actually rate the story a high/loveable 3 stars on its own, but the artwork is so wonderful I had to bump it up. I could just be reading into it too much, but it feels like there is very subtle commentary in here (Mama makes lists of "ghastly illnesses" and football players. and Papa makes lists of winged insects like butterflies and moths) that feels a little subversive but still very fitting for the characters, which I enjoyed. I found the visitor pretty creepy (though maybe I wasn't meant to) and loved the slight dark, but lightly humorous element in both the writing and the illustration. A lovely addition to my collection :)

[Milliebot · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful, large, illustrated book. If you love illustrated children's books, The Liszts (by Kyo Maclear and illustrated by Julia Sarda) is worth it for the art alone. But the story, though simple, is cute as well. There lives a whole family of list-makers who are consumed by their love of listing and they seem to have no room for anything else, until a stranger turns up. I would love to see this made into a movie, by the studio that did Triplets of Belleville - it would be perfect as a nearly silent film. I highly recommend this for listers young and old!

I received this book for free from LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. All opinions in this post are my own.

[Donalyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations and the premise are intriguing, but the story fell apart at the end.

[Basmaish · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art is stunning.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quirky and unusual, but likable.

[Ilana (illi69) · Rating 4 out of 5]

No relation to Franz Liszt the Hungarian composer that I could make out, just a family whose members like to make lists about all kinds of likely and unlikely things. The story is amusing but the real standout here is the latitude it gives for the wonderful illustrations by Júlia Sardà. Pure fun!

[Natasha Kareeva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Хороша!

[Sammm · Rating 5 out of 5]

A digitized ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Liszts is a lighthearted children's picture book. If not for NetGalley, I would have possibly never found out about this adorable book, for prior to randomly coming across it on the site, I have heard of neither the author nor the illustrator.

The family members of this story love to create list; what the lists are about are mostly quite relatable, though some of the items that made it to the lists are oddly specific, and I'd would wager not expected. *coughs, draw the four horsemen of the apocalypse*

(image source: The Liszts @ Maclear's official website)

Júlia Sardà's art is pretty sweet, and even though it has its unique style, in certain lists, when featuring iconic figures, I could still recognize quite a few and who they are supposed to be, and the only reason I'm unable to identify them all, is due to my personal lack of common sense lol. On that note, this actually makes me curious about how the collaboration works; for the lists without words and just images, did Kyo Maclear assign what to be drawn? I'm just going to assume yes, and that Júlia Sardà did a superb job on visualizing the lists.

Story-wise, like some of the reviews have mentioned... The ending is rather evasive instead of informative. When the visitor first showed up, it actually creeped me a little, cuz for some reason, I personally think he'd fit right in as one of the ghost in 夏目友人帳 (Natsume Yūjin-chō)... I suppose after the initial shock of his physical appearance *sorry, not sorry*, the story was still quite normal, but then the very last page happened and I'm just slightly puzzled about what it's implying. Nonetheless, the book is overall very enjoyable, and I'm looking forward to see more work from both the author and the artist! =D

ebook counterpart: ISBN13: 9781770494978.

[Aitor Farran · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5

Listas, listas y más listas. Y cuando se acaben las listas, haremos una lista de las listas que hemos hecho y luego volveremos a empezar. Eso es esencialmente lo que hacen los Liszts, una familia de lo más estrambótica y divertida, vistos desde fuera, porque cada uno hace las listas de las cosas que más les gustan, pero nunca comparten las listas con los demás.

Si queréis un libro que de una manera casi imperceptible os lleve a pensar el por qué nos gusta hacer ciertas cosas y somos incapaces de salir de esa zona de confort, no os perdáis este libro. Eso sí, de momento solo está publicado en inglés.

Las ilustraciones de Júlia Sardà le dan al libro eso tan importante que debe tener un álbum ilustrado, la historia paralela que puede crear el lector simplemente observando las ilustraciones. ¿Podemos saber quiénes son los Liszts solo leyendo el texto? Sí. ¿Podemos saber quiénes son los Liszts solo mirando las ilustraciones? También. ¿Se complementan ambos aspectos para amplificar la información de uno y de otro? Por supuesto. No hay nada más que decir, un muy buen álbum ilustrado que debería estar en las estanterías de mucha gente.

[Maura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free advanced copy of this book from the LibraryThing Early Reviewers giveaway in exchange for an honest review.

The illustrations in the this book are amazing. They look like they came out of a Wes Anderson movie and would be on the bookshelf of one of the “Royal Tenenbaums”. The story is intriguing, because most everyone knows a list maker or is a list maker themselves. It’s a simple, quirky, but cute story about how we sometimes need to take a break from our busy, scheduled lives and let a little of the unexpected come in. My favorite list in the book if the one of Bowie songs. If anything, get it for the illustrations!