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The Other Side
In The Other Side , artist, designer, provocateur Istvan Banyai takes readers on another exceptional visual journey. In graphically stunning illustrations that feature many clever twists in point of view, familiar scenes turn and turn again to show us the back, the front, the top, the bottom, the opposite, the other side of each perspective. Here's a door. What's on the other side? Here's a shoreline. What's on the other side? Here's a curtain. What's on the other side? The answers may surprise you. Delightful, sly, funny, and challenging, The Other Side will make readers want to look, and think, twice.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2004
1 person is currently reading
246 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
April 7, 2017
Surprisingly subtle for a visually simple style of illustration with few colors and minimal lines. At times I had to look or think carefully to find the connections between one scene and the next (and some I couldn't puzzle out!).
Here is a more obvious example of the perspective shift principle:
http://www.ist-one.com/images/work/g_...
Here is a more obvious example of the perspective shift principle:
http://www.ist-one.com/images/work/g_...
March 2, 2017
Fantastic book that will encourage thematic engagement by showing children (and adults) differing perspectives.
May 22, 2021
Ďakujem Zuzke za povolenie "omacať" tento skvost (v španielskej verzii, aj keď to by bolo vlastne jedno v akom jazyku je tých pár názvov).
Čo povedať o knihe, ktorá vlasne nemá slová? Že si ju treba užiť :)
Istvan má úžasný dar úkazať 2 strany tej istej mince, ktoré by mohli byť rovnaké, ale vlastne nikdy rovnaké nebudú... iný uhol pohľadu v tejto knihe naberá nový rozmer a vťahuje čitateľa a pozorovateľa do deja. Lebo vlastne každý príbeh má 2 strany, a jedna bez druhej nevedia vytvoriť celkový obraz. Asi tak ako život sám :)
Kniha využíva veľmi malú paletu farieb, primárne pracuje s bielou a čiernou, plus zopár ďalších, ale inak je kresba jednoduchá a ničím nerušená. Teda okrem toho, že si treba občas poriadne vykrútiž hlavu, aby človek zistil odkiaľ je ten pohľad braný. Je zábavné vidieť najprv A (či jednu stranu príbehu) a potom pozerať a hľadať B (teda stranu druhú).
Ak by si náhodou niekto nevedel predstaviť ako táto kniha vyzerá, či nebodaj potrebuje kúsok viac inšpirície, tak ten povestný posledný kúsok sklaračky je tu.
Spokojné 4 pradúce mačiatka zo všetkých uhlov samozrejme. Ale im je to jedno, keďže majú kľud a veselo pradú (ale psssst, to je tá druhá strana príbehu :) )
Prvá veta:
Posledná veta:
Goodreads Challenge 2021: 29. kniha
Čo povedať o knihe, ktorá vlasne nemá slová? Že si ju treba užiť :)
Istvan má úžasný dar úkazať 2 strany tej istej mince, ktoré by mohli byť rovnaké, ale vlastne nikdy rovnaké nebudú... iný uhol pohľadu v tejto knihe naberá nový rozmer a vťahuje čitateľa a pozorovateľa do deja. Lebo vlastne každý príbeh má 2 strany, a jedna bez druhej nevedia vytvoriť celkový obraz. Asi tak ako život sám :)
Kniha využíva veľmi malú paletu farieb, primárne pracuje s bielou a čiernou, plus zopár ďalších, ale inak je kresba jednoduchá a ničím nerušená. Teda okrem toho, že si treba občas poriadne vykrútiž hlavu, aby človek zistil odkiaľ je ten pohľad braný. Je zábavné vidieť najprv A (či jednu stranu príbehu) a potom pozerať a hľadať B (teda stranu druhú).
Ak by si náhodou niekto nevedel predstaviť ako táto kniha vyzerá, či nebodaj potrebuje kúsok viac inšpirície, tak ten povestný posledný kúsok sklaračky je tu.
Spokojné 4 pradúce mačiatka zo všetkých uhlov samozrejme. Ale im je to jedno, keďže majú kľud a veselo pradú (ale psssst, to je tá druhá strana príbehu :) )
Prvá veta:
Posledná veta:
Goodreads Challenge 2021: 29. kniha
November 8, 2015
I am a huge fan of Istvan Banyai so my rating might be bias. After reading Zoom and Re-Zoom as a student, I found I had discovered a picturebook artist who was at ease completely bending the picturebook genre and how we read books. Banyai has always been interested in perspective in all his work but never has it been more clearer than in 'The Other Side'.
As with all his books that I have read so far, this is another wordless picturebook in which all the pictures do the talking for you. Banyai takes familiar scenes that children could associate with and then turns our reading of them on its head as we look at the same scene from different perspectives. This might be from the other side, below, above behind. Each new perspective offers a new story and I think this is part of the appeal for child readers: this idea that it's exciting to look at incidents from different points of view.
Banyai's books often take a little bit of getting into. The lack of words means that the first read can be quick and confusing so my advice is to consistently revisit and rethink what it is that he might be trying to share with you. If you get too lost then think of the opening image which shows the instructions of a paper aeroplane being made. I think this is how Banyai sees the working page. He folds scenes in on themselves and asks you to think beyond the book and the story having to follow a linear perspective. It's exciting and fresh
As with all his books that I have read so far, this is another wordless picturebook in which all the pictures do the talking for you. Banyai takes familiar scenes that children could associate with and then turns our reading of them on its head as we look at the same scene from different perspectives. This might be from the other side, below, above behind. Each new perspective offers a new story and I think this is part of the appeal for child readers: this idea that it's exciting to look at incidents from different points of view.
Banyai's books often take a little bit of getting into. The lack of words means that the first read can be quick and confusing so my advice is to consistently revisit and rethink what it is that he might be trying to share with you. If you get too lost then think of the opening image which shows the instructions of a paper aeroplane being made. I think this is how Banyai sees the working page. He folds scenes in on themselves and asks you to think beyond the book and the story having to follow a linear perspective. It's exciting and fresh
January 16, 2008
This book will never disappoint you whether you're a child or a an adult it's
an experience on it's own
But be aware!!!
you might need some assist from a child to
Understand some of the visual tricks that
are too complicated for adults.
an experience on it's own
But be aware!!!
you might need some assist from a child to
Understand some of the visual tricks that
are too complicated for adults.
March 6, 2010
I liked Zoom better but this one is worth "reading" without words too.
After looking at it several times, I got the idea. Thus I am chging the three stars to five.
After looking at it several times, I got the idea. Thus I am chging the three stars to five.
February 3, 2018
I have never encountered a story that twists the perspective to such an extreme as this one. The reader follows a stream of individual stories all connected in small and obscure ways. It is safe to say that Banyai's work is a little avant-guard, with each individual story being distorted in directions that you would not have though imaginable. Points of view are turned upside down and inside out. I wonder whether there is an underlying statement about how narrow and black and white our outlook really is, that people look but do not really see.
It is quite a challenging books to access and I felt confused and disorientated to begin with. However, your understanding is dependent upon the level of effort and concentration that you put into reading. It is important to feel slightly confused as it allows you to flip back pages and look at the other side of the story. I think that this element of challenge is a positive- it prevents the audience being passive and only allows for a deeper reading as you revisit previous parts.
It is quite a challenging books to access and I felt confused and disorientated to begin with. However, your understanding is dependent upon the level of effort and concentration that you put into reading. It is important to feel slightly confused as it allows you to flip back pages and look at the other side of the story. I think that this element of challenge is a positive- it prevents the audience being passive and only allows for a deeper reading as you revisit previous parts.
May 2, 2018
Celkom sme sa so synom zabavili, kym sme zistili z ktorej strany a ktoreho uhla pohladu sa pozerame :) Knizka bez slov, preto nebolo treba vahat a zakupit ju na bookdepository.
Niekde sme sa stratili, ale minimalne sa stretli nase hlavy nad knihou, ked sme patrali :)
Je to skor pre vacsie deti, okolo 7 rokov cca. A ak su zbehle v citani komixov, bude ich to bavit :)
Vela stran to nema, ale vratit sa da k tomu hocikedy :)
Niekde sme sa stratili, ale minimalne sa stretli nase hlavy nad knihou, ked sme patrali :)
Je to skor pre vacsie deti, okolo 7 rokov cca. A ak su zbehle v citani komixov, bude ich to bavit :)
Vela stran to nema, ale vratit sa da k tomu hocikedy :)
June 15, 2020
Me ha parecido muy ingenioso.
El libro solo tiene dibujos, es decir no tiene escrito, y es precioso. Es súper entretenido ser testigo de cómo puede cambiar una situación si vemos la imagen desde el otro lado, pues muchas veces pensamos que las cosas son de un modo, pero finalmente no lo son.
¡Una entretenida forma para desarrollar la imaginación!
El libro solo tiene dibujos, es decir no tiene escrito, y es precioso. Es súper entretenido ser testigo de cómo puede cambiar una situación si vemos la imagen desde el otro lado, pues muchas veces pensamos que las cosas son de un modo, pero finalmente no lo son.
¡Una entretenida forma para desarrollar la imaginación!
January 30, 2014
This book was brought to my attention by another student in class because of the visual perspectives shown. It could be used with students who need to see from another's point of view or even as a visual exercise.
June 23, 2015
Oh, I do love this book! This is a book that cherishes and expands the imagination. I absolutely love it!
July 13, 2016
I was getting some books for my studies when I decided I will grab random fun books. I choose this one among others. The book is brilliant. It is a story told in pictures and there is barely words.
January 18, 2022
It was a good and fun time.
I feel like the concept could have been explored further but the art in here is good enough on its own. Cool stuff.
I feel like the concept could have been explored further but the art in here is good enough on its own. Cool stuff.
November 27, 2015
Title: The other side
Author: Istvan Banyai
Genre: picture book, wordless book
Theme(s): imagination
Opening line/sentence: N/A
Brief Book Summary: This is a wordless book. Each two picture shows a mini story in a very short time frame. On the first page is the one side of this story, and on the other side is the other side of this story, or the other way of looking at the picture.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1:
Publishers weekly
Like a Möbius strip, each page in this revelatory, nearly wordless book offers intimate perspectives on the same scene. In one of the simplest vignettes, the word "loop" flips into "pool," and in another, a circular spotlight shape highlights a tiny red triangle in the center of a page, while "the other side" pictures a yellow chick pecking through the paper. The initial pages encourage readers to seek a narrative, as in REM , Banyai's riff on dreaming, or Zoom , whose "plot" involved infinitely expanding views on the world. At first, six diagrams demonstrate how to fold a paper airplane, an indoor view follows the plane out of an apartment window and an outdoor view shows a boy at an adjacent window, releasing a flurry of origami planes. The very next page pictures a jet flying over a city, and "the other side" pictures its seated, bored passengers. Yet as the book proceeds, the images' connections grow more tenuous until unity is provided by only a few recurrent objects (a penguin, a spotted dog) and Banyai's hip style: graphite sketches enhanced with crisp digital colors such as stop-sign red, pale pink and hazard yellow. This volume's puzzles are not as densely intertwined as those in Banyai's previous work, but the author contrives yet another transformative page-turner. Ages 4-up. (Oct.)
Professional Recommendation/Review #2:
From School Library Journal
Grade 3-6–There's nothing mundane or predictable about Banyai's wordless picture book. As in Zoom and Re-Zoom (both Viking, 1995), the illustrator takes his audience on a visual journey that begins with a nearly blank page that, when turned, reveals instructions for folding a paper airplane. On the next page, a girl in her high-rise apartment practices her cello and a paper airplane can be seen outside her window. Readers flip the page to see the girl's building from the outside looking in. Paper airplanes are everywhere, thanks to a young neighbor one floor up who has been practicing his folding skills. Each pair of pages, front and back, presents inside and outside views, and although the scenes are not obviously linked to a larger plotline, they are connected through reoccurring images, colors, and themes. This is a challenging book, one that allows for creative speculation. The graphite-rendered artwork is quirky as well as infinitely interesting. Not everyone will get the sly humor, or be prepared to indulge in a book that demands such work. However, those who give it a try will be drawn into a thought-provoking, whimsical world. It's a book that begs to be talked about, and teachers will find it a useful tool for discussions about point-of-view and perspective.–Carol L. MacKay, Camrose Public Library, Alberta, Canada
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Response to Two Professional Reviews: I agree with the first review that the use of color in this book was very eye-catching. The majority of the pictures were in the form of sketching, but the use of crisp digital color gives lives to those pictures and made it more powerful. I agree with the second review that it is nothing mundane but totally an exciting and innovative book.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: The pictures are mostly black and white and grey, but the important elements such as the main character in this book are colored in pink or red. Children will be reminded of the connections of two pictures by the outstanding color of these important elements. Illustrations are somehow compclicated
Consideration of Instructional Application: It can be used to do a treasure hunt game in the classroom. Students will find out the connections between two pictures, and the story line in the book. Or it can be used to do an imagination game. Ask students to imagine what will happen in the next picture after they see the first one.
Author: Istvan Banyai
Genre: picture book, wordless book
Theme(s): imagination
Opening line/sentence: N/A
Brief Book Summary: This is a wordless book. Each two picture shows a mini story in a very short time frame. On the first page is the one side of this story, and on the other side is the other side of this story, or the other way of looking at the picture.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1:
Publishers weekly
Like a Möbius strip, each page in this revelatory, nearly wordless book offers intimate perspectives on the same scene. In one of the simplest vignettes, the word "loop" flips into "pool," and in another, a circular spotlight shape highlights a tiny red triangle in the center of a page, while "the other side" pictures a yellow chick pecking through the paper. The initial pages encourage readers to seek a narrative, as in REM , Banyai's riff on dreaming, or Zoom , whose "plot" involved infinitely expanding views on the world. At first, six diagrams demonstrate how to fold a paper airplane, an indoor view follows the plane out of an apartment window and an outdoor view shows a boy at an adjacent window, releasing a flurry of origami planes. The very next page pictures a jet flying over a city, and "the other side" pictures its seated, bored passengers. Yet as the book proceeds, the images' connections grow more tenuous until unity is provided by only a few recurrent objects (a penguin, a spotted dog) and Banyai's hip style: graphite sketches enhanced with crisp digital colors such as stop-sign red, pale pink and hazard yellow. This volume's puzzles are not as densely intertwined as those in Banyai's previous work, but the author contrives yet another transformative page-turner. Ages 4-up. (Oct.)
Professional Recommendation/Review #2:
From School Library Journal
Grade 3-6–There's nothing mundane or predictable about Banyai's wordless picture book. As in Zoom and Re-Zoom (both Viking, 1995), the illustrator takes his audience on a visual journey that begins with a nearly blank page that, when turned, reveals instructions for folding a paper airplane. On the next page, a girl in her high-rise apartment practices her cello and a paper airplane can be seen outside her window. Readers flip the page to see the girl's building from the outside looking in. Paper airplanes are everywhere, thanks to a young neighbor one floor up who has been practicing his folding skills. Each pair of pages, front and back, presents inside and outside views, and although the scenes are not obviously linked to a larger plotline, they are connected through reoccurring images, colors, and themes. This is a challenging book, one that allows for creative speculation. The graphite-rendered artwork is quirky as well as infinitely interesting. Not everyone will get the sly humor, or be prepared to indulge in a book that demands such work. However, those who give it a try will be drawn into a thought-provoking, whimsical world. It's a book that begs to be talked about, and teachers will find it a useful tool for discussions about point-of-view and perspective.–Carol L. MacKay, Camrose Public Library, Alberta, Canada
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Response to Two Professional Reviews: I agree with the first review that the use of color in this book was very eye-catching. The majority of the pictures were in the form of sketching, but the use of crisp digital color gives lives to those pictures and made it more powerful. I agree with the second review that it is nothing mundane but totally an exciting and innovative book.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: The pictures are mostly black and white and grey, but the important elements such as the main character in this book are colored in pink or red. Children will be reminded of the connections of two pictures by the outstanding color of these important elements. Illustrations are somehow compclicated
Consideration of Instructional Application: It can be used to do a treasure hunt game in the classroom. Students will find out the connections between two pictures, and the story line in the book. Or it can be used to do an imagination game. Ask students to imagine what will happen in the next picture after they see the first one.
October 25, 2019
I read Zoom for the first time last night and now having read The Other Side, I can safely say that Banyai is a genius. This book takes the idea of perspective and makes it the forefront of this story. It challenges our perception that what you see is the whole picture, whereas in this book when you turn the page it's like it flips the picture, you see the other side. I think my favourite one has to be the beak poking through the page and then on the other side you see the chick itself with half it's beak hidden by the paper; such a simple illustration but it carries the message that what you see isn't always the whole picture, and that sometimes you need to see the other side in order to get the whole story.
It is full of such lovely illustrations with details that you'll miss if you don't take your time to look at them properly. Like the penguin on the bike, that then appears again as a poster on the boy's bedroom wall at the end. Bright colours are one given to some aspects of the illustrations which implies they are the elements we should be focussing on as readers, they are the things that are key to both perspectives of the situation which I think reflects the fact that sometimes we see the same things as other people, but there are also things we don't see in the same way which is important for people to remember.
Like Zoom, this book also comes full circle in a way, you start with a child in their bedroom looking out the window and by the end you are back in the room of another child in what appears to be the same apartment building. You've been taken on this journey by Banyai and by the end you're back where you started but with a lot more to think about than before. Such a clever book!
It is full of such lovely illustrations with details that you'll miss if you don't take your time to look at them properly. Like the penguin on the bike, that then appears again as a poster on the boy's bedroom wall at the end. Bright colours are one given to some aspects of the illustrations which implies they are the elements we should be focussing on as readers, they are the things that are key to both perspectives of the situation which I think reflects the fact that sometimes we see the same things as other people, but there are also things we don't see in the same way which is important for people to remember.
Like Zoom, this book also comes full circle in a way, you start with a child in their bedroom looking out the window and by the end you are back in the room of another child in what appears to be the same apartment building. You've been taken on this journey by Banyai and by the end you're back where you started but with a lot more to think about than before. Such a clever book!
September 23, 2021
A super cool picture book I got for my niece. I'd say any age could appreciate this one.
Read
May 2, 2017The class will be split into four small groups. Each group will be given a different picture. However, two picture make up both sides of the scene. We will do the Gallagher strategy Three looks. The group will only have a few seconds to study to the picture before taking a moment to write what they seen in the designated columns. They will repeat this two more times. Each time, they will notice something different and new or gain more clarity on something in the picture. After the second look, they will share with their group what each person has seen in the first two looks. The third look will hopefully be a look where the students gain more insight on what is going on in the picture.
After going over everyone's finding on the third look with their groups, they will take out an essay (whatever essay we are working on like a descriptive or persuasive essay) I will tell them to read their essay and find something that is wrong with it. Next, they will read it again and find something else that is wrong with it like grammar, punctuation or awkward wording. On the third time, I will tell them to read it and see what else they can find in their papers. Revising takes more then one look to find all the mistakes just like it took more than one look to understand what was happening in the picture.
After going over everyone's finding on the third look with their groups, they will take out an essay (whatever essay we are working on like a descriptive or persuasive essay) I will tell them to read their essay and find something that is wrong with it. Next, they will read it again and find something else that is wrong with it like grammar, punctuation or awkward wording. On the third time, I will tell them to read it and see what else they can find in their papers. Revising takes more then one look to find all the mistakes just like it took more than one look to understand what was happening in the picture.
October 3, 2016
1. There were not any awards for this book.
2. The appropriate grade levels would be from preschool and up.
3. This book is about perspective and all the different points of view. There are different pictures but always with two different views. For example, a picture in the story you can see an airplane in the sky but when you turn the page it is the perspective of someone inside the plane.
4. I enjoyed going through this book because it helped me remember that there are always different perspectives and point of views for anything or everything. One of its pictures shows that there was a "bang" coming from around the corner but when you turn the page of the book, it was a movie scene. This is a great reminder of know the full story before you do or say anything.
5. a) A great in-class use for this book would be to show the children different point of views. For example, the class can be split in four groups. Each quarter of the class can be near a corner and draw how the classroom looks like in from their view. After everyone finished, everyone can share their lovely drawings.
b)Another in-class use can be using it for a class book. Everyone's picture can be incorporated or have the children work together on the two different point of views.
2. The appropriate grade levels would be from preschool and up.
3. This book is about perspective and all the different points of view. There are different pictures but always with two different views. For example, a picture in the story you can see an airplane in the sky but when you turn the page it is the perspective of someone inside the plane.
4. I enjoyed going through this book because it helped me remember that there are always different perspectives and point of views for anything or everything. One of its pictures shows that there was a "bang" coming from around the corner but when you turn the page of the book, it was a movie scene. This is a great reminder of know the full story before you do or say anything.
5. a) A great in-class use for this book would be to show the children different point of views. For example, the class can be split in four groups. Each quarter of the class can be near a corner and draw how the classroom looks like in from their view. After everyone finished, everyone can share their lovely drawings.
b)Another in-class use can be using it for a class book. Everyone's picture can be incorporated or have the children work together on the two different point of views.
January 31, 2014
I happened to be re-shelving this book at work and flipped it open to make sure it went in the juvenile section - and then I ended up admiring the whole thing! This is an artistic work of genius - where each pair of pages (front and back) show the "other sides". For instance, one page's point of view is from the audience in a large hall, while the reverse is from the perspective of the performer peeking through the stage curtain. While it cannot be said that there was any story or plot here, there were recurring characters and somehow each scene had some feature similar with the scene before. This would be a great book for children for numerous reasons: to teach perspective, of course, but children would also love pouring over the scenes to find the continuities and I would be intrigued to see if creative children (or any reader!) would make up a story to tie it all together.
December 7, 2014
Title: "The Other Side"
Author/Illustrator: Istvan Banyai
Published: August 4th 2005 by Chronicle Books
Genre: Realistic Fiction
The author and illustrator has created an amazing book on perspectives. What really is on the other side? What is the other point of view? We might have never thought of these things until now, but Istvan Banyai creates fantastic illustrations to help us answer such questions. Throughout the story, the reader is shown one perspective of a scene or event, and as the page is turned, that same event is depicted - only from the opposite side! Not only does Istvan Banyai show us the opposite side, he shows us the back, front, top, bottom, etc. All perspectives are portrayed in this picture book which get the reader's mind creatively thinking as the journey continues.
Author/Illustrator: Istvan Banyai
Published: August 4th 2005 by Chronicle Books
Genre: Realistic Fiction
The author and illustrator has created an amazing book on perspectives. What really is on the other side? What is the other point of view? We might have never thought of these things until now, but Istvan Banyai creates fantastic illustrations to help us answer such questions. Throughout the story, the reader is shown one perspective of a scene or event, and as the page is turned, that same event is depicted - only from the opposite side! Not only does Istvan Banyai show us the opposite side, he shows us the back, front, top, bottom, etc. All perspectives are portrayed in this picture book which get the reader's mind creatively thinking as the journey continues.
July 8, 2011
Age:
Grades 4-YA
Genre:
Wordless Picture Book
Diversity:
Perspectives from "other side" of a persons view. Viewpoints.
Illustrations:
Lots of bright colors, bright yellows, black, whites, reds, grays.
Personal response:
I was taken aback by this wordless picture book by Istvan Banyai who is an amazing illustrator and writer. He makes the reader or viewer take a second look at the pictures. I think he is prolific. The picture book depicts everyday scenes and reveals what is on the other side of that reality. Amazing!!!
Curricular or programming connections:
Students could explore themes, and develop short stories about the pictures and give the characters voice. They can also draw their own other side pictures.
Grades 4-YA
Genre:
Wordless Picture Book
Diversity:
Perspectives from "other side" of a persons view. Viewpoints.
Illustrations:
Lots of bright colors, bright yellows, black, whites, reds, grays.
Personal response:
I was taken aback by this wordless picture book by Istvan Banyai who is an amazing illustrator and writer. He makes the reader or viewer take a second look at the pictures. I think he is prolific. The picture book depicts everyday scenes and reveals what is on the other side of that reality. Amazing!!!
Curricular or programming connections:
Students could explore themes, and develop short stories about the pictures and give the characters voice. They can also draw their own other side pictures.
July 21, 2016
Not sure how to write about a book with no words. But you still have to carefully "read" the images, which I suppose is why this was in with the graphic novels at the library. Each page is an image which refers to the "other side" which usually seems to be the next page. However, the start and end of the book also seem to be mirrors of one another, and various other pages are connected to one another through objects or shapes which appear in both pages. The images also get progressively more surreal or fanciful. I feel like this is a book you need to read repeatedly, forget about, and read again to actually understand, possibly with the help of a child.
November 15, 2013
My newly-five-year-old son picked this book out from the library this week. I might have helped him find it.
Opening this book is like opening the door to a different dimension, losing your bearings, getting lost, finding objects where you least expect them, looking and seeing, twisting your perspective, twisting your world-view, and finding a bit of yourself. And when you close that back cover, you felt like you just rode the Tilt-a-Whirl at the amusement park.
Some of the images went right over my son's head and I had to show him the connection. Some of the images went right over my head and my son had to show me the connection.
Opening this book is like opening the door to a different dimension, losing your bearings, getting lost, finding objects where you least expect them, looking and seeing, twisting your perspective, twisting your world-view, and finding a bit of yourself. And when you close that back cover, you felt like you just rode the Tilt-a-Whirl at the amusement park.
Some of the images went right over my son's head and I had to show him the connection. Some of the images went right over my head and my son had to show me the connection.
November 29, 2015
Banyai's wordless books (Zoom, Re-Zoom) all deal with different points of view and changing perspective. The Other Side features a series of different scenes, shown from two opposite perspectives. For example, the first page shows the scene from the side of a swimming pool; the next page shows the scene from under the water looking up at the side of the pool.
This is a creative book that provides lots of detail to look at again and again. This book could also be used for writing assignments that deal with point of view. A true original.
This is a creative book that provides lots of detail to look at again and again. This book could also be used for writing assignments that deal with point of view. A true original.
February 19, 2016
This is a very sparsely worded book, focusing mainly on illustrations versus narrative. The illustrations provide a scene from one point of view and then the next page provides the same scene from the opposite point of view. My favorite pair of illustrations is the view of a little boy looking at his friend in the distance who is bending over and looking through his legs back at him. Then the next page you see the original little boy standing "upside down" from the view of the boy bending over.
The illustrations are, of course, excellent.
The illustrations are, of course, excellent.
September 24, 2019
Very interesting graphic novel. It explores different perspectives, view points, reflections and can be interpreted in different ways. There are lots of small similarities and everytime you look, you see something new. I would flip back to pages to draw comparisons and question what the illustrator has done and why. This would be very open for children. Even giving them one or two pictures could generate interesting discussion about the illustrators intentions, what they see, what the story could be and why it interests them. Also good for art, symmetry and perspectives, lines and colour etc.
April 7, 2008
It took me a while to figure out how to "read" this book. There are no words, but I was trying to read it like a traditional book, which did not work out so well.
You have to view each page in relation to the page on the "other side", i.e. the next page.
This is a wonderful study in perspective. Everything is very subtle, and I'm pretty sure I missed a LOT. May require a second or third "reading."
You have to view each page in relation to the page on the "other side", i.e. the next page.
This is a wonderful study in perspective. Everything is very subtle, and I'm pretty sure I missed a LOT. May require a second or third "reading."
June 14, 2015
This is one of those books that is a neat concept but is a bit above the boys I babysit and whose novelty wears off after the first reading for an adult. All about seeing things from both perspectives, The Other Side is a wonderful concept book for kids. I would just recommend borrowing it from the library rather than spending money on a copy.
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November 2, 2016(DCPL)
Hm. I tried, but I just couldn't get it. One reviewer advises that a confused adult get help from a child. I guess I'd do that, if I had access to one. The concept, though, to consider other perspectives, is terrific. And though it's been done, it hasn't been done to death, so good on ye, Banyai.
Hm. I tried, but I just couldn't get it. One reviewer advises that a confused adult get help from a child. I guess I'd do that, if I had access to one. The concept, though, to consider other perspectives, is terrific. And though it's been done, it hasn't been done to death, so good on ye, Banyai.
November 8, 2018
A chilling wordless picture book displaying the importance of considering the difference in perspectives. Each page shows a viewpoint from a specific scene and when you turn the page, you see the opposite perspective. The way in which the book doesn't contain any words is effective, as it allows the reader to think deeply about what they are seeing and create their own view of the scene.
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