The Day the Stones Walked Reviews
“Finally someone has written an Easter Island book for children that is just that. It's a little story about a boy, Pico, his father a moai carver, and a tidal wave that brings the two together in an appreciation of their heritage. The illustrations by William Low are true to their subject matter and have the powerful feel one gets when viewing the moai in person. The story, though fiction, has that same feel, probably due to the author's genuine appreciation for the place, the people, and their marvelous works.
“This book even passed the grandchildren test; holding the interest of a five and an eight year old who up until now have been reluctant to share their Grandfather's appreciation for all things Rapanui, and for that I thank T.A. Barron and William Low.”
—Easter
Island Foundation
"The Day the Stones Walked by T.A. Barron concludes with an author's note about the long-ago deforestation of Easter Island. 'Will we, who live on the bigger island called Earth, make the same mistake on a much larger scale?'"
—The Wall Street Journal"Barron has done it again, the perfect blend of wonderful imagery and great storytelling."
—Frances Beinecke, Natural Resources Defense Council
"Legend has it that the enormous stone statues on Easter Island can help the people when they are in danger. Aware of an approaching tsunami, young Pico runs to warn his father, who is carving one of the stones. Pico is engulfed by the towering wave, gets tangled in seaweed, and is saved only by holding onto one of the totems: "Half drowned, I barely held on. All at once, the statue seemed to shift beneath me. To lift me higher. And then—To walk." Using a palette made up of browns, greens, and blues in Adobe Photoshop, the artist depicts the statues in dramatic, sometimes eerie spreads ("…great chins jutted, dark eyes peered, and harsh brows loomed, on bodies that stood six or seven times taller than me"); the big wave as it crashes on shore; and the boy as he struggles underwater. A touching illustration on the final pages shows Pico being embraced by his father. The author also provides some fascinating information about the statues and the ancient culture that created them. This picture book will be enjoyed by children who are old enough to deal with the fantastical and scary elements in the story."
—School Library Journal
"Barron's dramatic text is matched by Low's careful use of light and shadow in his compelling illustrations."
—The Los Angeles Times
"The simple story brings several of Barron's frequent concerns—kids, nature and an underlying sense of mystery—to life. Pico, a young boy from the South Pacific, lives through a terrifying, yet illuminating, tsunami that sheds light on one of history's true enigmas, the "moai" of Easter Island. Barron's writing is movingly poetic, nicely accompanying Low's richly colored mixed-media illustrations."
—Boulder Daily Camera
"While Mr. Barron adds an ecological note in the afterwards, for me the most powerful part of the narrative was the relationship between father and son—the ancestor story. Teachers at almost any level (social studies in the upper grades) could find something to connect to their curriculum. EL, MS, HS - ADVISABLE."
—Cindy Mitchell, Librarian, South Jordan Middle School, Utah
“In an essential Note at the end of the book T.A. Barron
writes that when he visited the great carved faces of
Young Pico is the child of one of the great carvers of
The tsunami is a matter of archeological record, one still
remembered by present-day spirit-singers of
Barron rightly hopes that readers can learn from the
experience of
—Antoinette Botsford
