Out of Nowhere

by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros

A beautiful, touching tale full of heart and visual humour from the creator of The Suitcase.
Beetle and Caterpillar are best friends. Every day, they sit together on a big rock, sharing a picnic and looking out over the forest. But one day, Caterpillar goes missing and, try as he might, Beetle cannot find her. Just as he is about to give up hope, a very friendly (and rather familiar) butterfly appears out of nowhere. Can it be his friend? She might look different but she is still just the same and they are together again, at last.

Genres: Picture Books, Friendship, Childrens, Animals, Storytime, Fiction, Adventure

32 pages, Hardcover

First published April 20, 2020

About the author

Chris Naylor-Ballesteros is a picture book author and illustrator, published by Nosy Crow, Andersen Press and Bloomsbury.

Reviews

[Farjaneh_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

از ناکجا نشر مهرسا

[Pam Schwartz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chris Naylor-Ballesteros was recommended to me by a Librarian who absolutely loves Picture Books and Out of Nowhere did not disappoint. I also read The Suitcase and loved it too. Both stories handle issues of friendship in simple, touching, and humorous ways. The illustrations are simple and effective. I think Klassen fans would enjoy them and I want to send a copy of this book to a good friend who had to move away.

[Molly Cluff (Library!) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aw, that was adorable. A sweet story of friendship (and featuring a butterfly, so great for springtime despite the muted color palette). The illustrations are all just black and white with that pop of red for contrast, which I thought was pretty artistic and effective. And I liked Beetle's song that he made up while travelling--I definitely make up songs basically every day, haha.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's such a sweet story, and the illustrations are gorgeous.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful story and I love that most of the illustrations are black and white and his friend is the pop of colour. I love the little song the beetle sings.

[L.A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fabulously special book! I’ve never read anything so balanced. Even the book itself is just the right size. I felt I was unconsciously filling in the story behind the story as I flipped wordless, poignant pages and processed precise, minimalistic wording. I think I personally would enjoy reading this even into adolescence, and hope my daughter will too. The “moral” here is timeless.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beetle and Caterpillar spent everyday together, until one day caterpillar disappeared. Beetle thinks he sees her in the distance and sets out to find her. When he finally reaches his destination, he sees that he mistook his friend Caterpillar for mushrooms. While Beetle sits and rests, a bugs flutters down to sit and eat with him. Beetle realizes even though she looks different, it is Caterpillar.

The pages are filled with dark, charcoal images (colored in mostly black, white, and red).

I found the story and illustrations charming.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend is a friend, worthy of being searched for and loved even if they have changed. This beautiful kid-friendly message is delivered in a masterfully drawn visual package. Naylor-Ballesteros uses a black and white palette with eye-catching highlights of red on an oversize format with dramatic success. Wonderful touches of humor and a true sweetness add to the story and the result is a memorable winner.

This will be terrific as a read aloud and discussion starter and a lap book to cuddle with.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the mostly black-and-white story (and I am not just referring to the illustrations) there is so much packed and stuffed deep in here to be found. This is not just a story of two friends. Please see beyond the surface! When the beetle suffers a loss, he could have let life pass on by. He could have stagnated and stayed and stewed, stuck and stymied by his own lack of bravery. No one would have faulted him. "He is mourning," they would have said.

Yet, sometimes when we pretend to be something, that something comes true! If we pretend long enough and hard enough we can be BRAVE! We can make ourselves believe better things, more positive things! And in the end, if we look beyond the surface, good things, may be waiting.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super sweet story about friendship. Great art. I love it.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars A sweet friendship story although the highlight for me was the fantastic black and white illustrations with the red accents.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very sweet, about friendship and change.

[Kate Atherton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is poignant, well written and has a clear beginning, middle, end and heartwarming message. The two friends, a rhinoceros beetle and a caterpillar eat a picnic together every day. When the caterpillar does what caterpillars do and disappears to cocoon up and transform into a butterfly the beetle goes on a quest to find its friend, ultimately finding the butterfly and realizing though friends (and friendships) change they can still be in each others lives in a new way. The illustrations in this book are really well composed, have exciting scribbly pencil lines and pops of red that help lead the eye through the book. I very much recommend this book to children and adults alike who fear losing friends as they are but know they will always care for them no matter what changes their lives go through.

[Erin *BookDragon_Library* · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

I really like the illustration style which looks like charcoal sketches. Everything is black and white except the caterpillar. It is a story of friendship. Beetle thinks caterpillar is lost in the forest when she disappears but the reader can see that she is hanging in her cocoon right under the rock. I like the message of that even though beetle doesn’t feel brave he still sets out to help his friend.

“I don’t feel very strong at all. But if I wanted to find my friend, I’d just have to pretend.”

I also like the message of when the new butterfly arrives the beetle recognizes it was his friend.

“She had changed a little bit, but it was my friend all the same.”

Notes: friendship. Caterpillar. Metamorphosis. 2021 in US.

It could be used as a picture book link to a science unit on caterpillars and metamorphosis since that is going on in the background of the story.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a simple story about a caterpillar and a horned beetle and their friendship, but is it? Despite changes and distance, we can remain friends. This message is universal and may be quite helpful to elementary students who see friends come and go throughout their young lives. These illustrations are adorable and the composition of the black and white with the spots of red are warm and friendly. If only we took the time to learn from these characters and recognize the the time we share with friends is priceless. Friendship is worth a bit of searching and accepting of changes as they are likely to happen.

I believe my first graders will love this book as they study insects and the changes in the life cycle of a butterfly are a part of this story.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Then I looked more closely. And I just knew. It was my friend! She had changed a little bit, but it was my friend all the same.”

When his friend disappears, a beetle goes in search of her. What the reader sees long before the beetle does, is that his friend is a caterpillar and she has spun her cocoon. The beetle thinks he spots his friend and heads toward her, but it is a mistake. Finally, Beetle is tired from searching and decides to stay where he is (a long way from home) until he gets his strength back. It is then that his friend finds him.

No matter how they change on the outside, a good friend is always a friend on the inside, because it’s not how they look, it’s how they act.

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Beetle’s friend Caterpillar suddenly vanishes, he sets off in search of her.

The illustrations are black and white with red as an accent color. (They look like they were done in pastel crayons or colored pencils, but there is no note on the illustrations in the pub info.)

This is a sweet story about friendship. Beetle is afraid to leave his rock to search for his missing friend, but he determines to be brave for his friend’s sake.

The caterpillar’s metamorphosis also seems to imply that friendships can continue even if one of the friends changes. Over time, people do change. Sometimes friendships survive it, and sometimes they don’t.

The book uses the literary device dramatic irony, which enables the reader to know things the main character doesn’t. In this case, young readers will know where the caterpillar is.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fantastic story about a beetle who becomes friends with a caterpillar. When the friend disappears one day (in a cocoon), the beetle looks everywhere for his friend. Eventually, a butterfly sits down with the beetle. He realizes it is his friend! She just looks a little different.

This would be a great way to help explain to young ones how trans people transition. They look a little different than they used to, but everything they do is quite the same.

Great for preschool and older kid storytimes.

[Alissa Tsaparikos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a sweet story about friendships that last regardless of changes. I liked the clever use of color in this one, as it is done mostly in black and white save for dashes of red that keep the story moving and show the reader what is important to look at. I also like that the pictures have a story that runs parallel to the narrative but gives the reader more than what is being told. A creative story that will have children rooting for the two friends to be reunited.

[Nadina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, I almost cried with this one, and I think it is just the message that some friends are just always with us, even if they change/leave, they are in our hearts, and missing a childhood friend right now, this book makes me sad because of it, though more a melancholy sad.
The illustrations were beautiful and I love the focus on black and white with just the red bringing out another color.
It was simple and short but beautiful. I loved it.

[charlene.librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a certain dynamism in the rendering of this book with the simplicity of black and white (graphite and colored pencil, I presume). The big rock is imposing with its birds eye view of the land beyond, and the textures are dramatic whether it's depicting grass, a crow, a frog, or the beetle with its picnic basket. I love the song the beetle sings to itself and the thermos and tea it drinks. Friendship lost and found again is a treasure.

[Maeve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beetle and Caterpillar are friends who visit each other every day. One morning, Beetle can't find Caterpillar (who has turned into a chrysalis), so Beetle sets out to find its friend. After a very long journey, Beetle realizes it made a mistake and readies itself to head back. Before Beetle can leave, a new friend-Butterfly-arrives...and Beetle realizes Butterfly is its old friend Caterpillar!

Storytime:
Friends

[Ellee Nichols · Rating 4 out of 5]

Copyright date: 2020
Star rating: 4
Award: Mitten Award
Genre: picture book
Summary w/ themes: This book is about a beetle that becomes friends with a caterpillar, but when the caterpillar goes into metamorphosis, he doesn't know where his friend went. Will he be able to find him again?
Use for future classroom: Teaching about friendship or metamorphosis
Thoughts of book: I thought this was a pretty cute book with a good message.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic tale of caterpillar/butterfly. Nicely done. Enjoy the black and white illustrations and contrast of bright color. I enjoyed the non-explanation and acceptance of the metamorphosis. Would be good for kids going back to school and a lesson in “not everything needs a comment”. Your friend has new glasses, grown three feet, has wings...just be a friend.

[Shelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beetle and Caterpillar’s friendship came out of nowhere. Then one day Caterpillar was gone. Trepidatious yet determined Beetle, set out to find his comrade only to be found mistaken in his destination. Will he ever see Caterpillar again? And if he does will changes prevent their bond from reforming?

[Lydia M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning visually and yet simple and straight-forward illustrations. I'm a sucker for spot-of-color art in picture books and this one is my new favorite. Would be a great storytime book but also could be used to help children who are dealing a loved one changing, whether a transition or something else.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beetle and a caterpillar are best friends. When the caterpillar disappears, the brave little beetle goes on a quest to find the caterpillar -- who is changing into a butterfly. A comforting picture book about a friend temporarily lost, then found and the beauty of unconditional love. A book for all ages. "Our friends may change, but the love we feel for them remains the same."

[Ersa S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is such a sweet book about learning how, even if friends change, they are still our friend. What a great message to young readers and the song was too cute to boot!

My only gripe would be with the wordless illustration spreads and that it could be puzzling to toddlers (3-5 year olds).

I would love to incorperate this into a storytime for my kiddos.

[Sedona Gallardo]

sometimes children’s books just make you cry, ya know?
The back of this book says “Our friends may change, but the love we feel for them remains the same.” THAT IS A TEAR JERKER RIGHT THERE!
Sometimes literature is simple. Sometimes the greatest lessons can be learned through the lens of children.

[Octavia Octopus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A powerfully quiet story about friendship. This is one of my favorites. Kids love the adventure with the misdirection (there’s always someone who figures it out early!), the dramatic tension, and the singing to stay brave. Plus sharing the simple joys of picnicking and moon viewing. We love this book!