Name: New Day for Umwell the Gray, A
SKU: 978-0-88448-944-3
Availability: InStock

William lives in a glum world. His moods and his thoughts are gray. Even most of his clothes are gray. But a girl named Purple appears one gray morning, the only dash of color in William’s otherwise dull yard. She asks his name, and when he answers “Um, well…,” she dubs him Umwell the Gray, then pulls him into an exploration of a world that is always new and exciting when seen through her eyes—a parallel universe to the one William has been inhabiting. This powerful picture book provides an occasion and vehicle to pull kids away from video screens and into closer contact with the natural world around them and the imaginative worlds within.

Nathaniel Jenks has always found peace and inspiration in the natural world and hopes to convey through his children's stories the intuition that not only are people a part of the natural world, but it is also a part of us, woven inextricably into our being. An outdoor and sports writer, this is his first children’s book.

Rebecca Evans worked for nine years as an artist and designer before returning to her first love: children’s book illustration and writing. Her books include Someday I’ll Fly; Friends in Fur Coats; The Shopkeeper’s Bear; Naughty Nana; Mei Ling in China; Finding the Speed of Light (starred review, Kirkus); and Alone Like Me (starred review, Kirkus). She lives in Maryland with her husband and four young children, teaches art at the Chesapeake Center for the Creative Arts, and works from her home studio whenever time permits. Rebecca’s boundless imagination enjoys free rein at www.rebeccaevans.net.