Safe at Last

For animal lovers and sensitive souls comes this quietly breathtaking story of a child whose compassion for wild creatures is returned to him during a fearful storm.

Each morning when James leaves his small house by the sea, he cycles around the island and calls out to his friends. “Good morning!” he calls to the otters in their pool. “Good morning!” to the birds in the trees, the rabbits in their burrow, and the bears in their cave. Every day is wonderful, until one evening when ominous clouds start to paint the sky, and a fierce storm crashes in. The light glowing inside his house gives James comfort, but what about the animals? Should he go outside and make sure they’re safe? Beautifully layered illustrations follow the child in his little red coat as he searches the wild, windy night for his friends, to no avail—until an anxious return home rewards him with the fruits of his kindness. Stylized and atmospheric, Richard Jones’s exquisite art and lyrical text tell a heart-stirring tale of a loving bond that will linger long after the book is closed.

Richard Jones has worked for more than twenty years in the creative arts. He is the illustrator of numerous picture books, including Marshmallow Clouds: Two Poets at Play among Figures of Speech by Ted Kooser and Connie Wanek; The Proper Way to Meet a Hedgehog and Other How-To Poems, edited by Paul B. Janeczko, and Bird Builds a Nest and The Squirrels’ Busy Year, both by Martin Jenkins. Richard Jones lives in Devon, England.