Mason and Welch present a story that folds in on itself and then out. Swirling colors and abstract spirals telescope from the universe, to the galaxy, to a valley and a village, to a home, a child’s bedroom, the child snuggled beneath a quilt, to the child’s own heart. With a quote from Einstein as its touchstone, the text opens into sweet rhythms: “Inside all / Is a universe / Energy flowing. / Inside the universe / Is a galaxy / Milky and glowing.” With richly colored mixed-media swirls that resolve into hills and trees, windows and bedrooms, each opening displays double-page, full-bleed pictures with a single white star superimposed throughout. The last line of each three-line text curves to echo the spiral motif. The images tend toward the abstract but are recognizable, creating a very gentle and quite moving bedtime story.
— Kirkus Reviews (August 1, 2008)
“Inside all / Is a universe / Energy flowing.” So begins a journey at the outermost edge of everything. Inside the universe is a galaxy, milky and glowing, and inside the galaxy is a planet, blue and hopeful. The text moves from space to earth, from valley to village, and finally to a home where a child sleeps. Now the book takes a more metaphysical turn as it explains that “Inside your heart / Is all / Love overflowing.” The impressionistic artwork, swirling and whirling, starts out with the blues of the sky and becomes more solid once on earth, with trees, snow, and starshine falling around a brown house. Under the bedcovers, which look as much like earth and sea as blankets, a childs face peeks out; then the art becomes ethereal once more, taking the child to the top of a mountain. Attractive in look and compact and appealing in story, this brings the idea of interconnectedness to a level young children can understand. The soothing tone makes it a good bedtime choice as well.
— Booklist (October 1, 2008)
What child hasn’t thought, “The world is so big and I am so small!” A sense of security – and a sense of ones place in a big world – is important to everyone. For the children in your life, a heartwarming and whimsical new book, Inside All, beautifully conveys the good feeling of being connected to the universe, easily envisioning every other child, all over the world, also being connected. In just over 100 well-chosen words, author Margaret H. Mason focuses on the great cosmos, then down to the heart of a sleepy child at bedtime, and finds them equally magnificent. Amazingly, Inside All is illustrator Holly Welchs first picture book. Through her use of color and repeating patterns to emphasize recurring themes, she brings nature to life and connects it with the life of a child. She gave birth to her son Summit while working on this book – and feels that his presence on the inside influenced the images. Inside All would make a particularly wonderful Valentines Day memory with your children.
— Kids Vermont (February 2009)
This quiet bedtime story will both relax and reassure a little one as it gently defines his or her connection to the world. Starting with “Inside all is a universe” it narrows its focus on each double-page spread until it returns, full circle, to “Inside your heart is all.” A bright white asymetrical star is superimposed on every set of vibrant images. Each line of five or six words is followed by a brief phrase that ends with an adjective, usually participial, containing a long “o.” The text is soothing and melds well with the rich tones of the illustrations.
— New Jersey Youth Services – Mary Ellen Monahan (Dec. 2008)
The universe came through the window one night as Margaret Mason stared up at the stars. It came as a vision suddenly, tumbling down to earth and into her imagination. The universe is so vast; we humans are so tiny. And yet, we’re all connected in some way. And, Mason thought then, if she feels small, how do young children feel? “How scared kids can feel and how scary the world can be,” said Mason, a Ferndale resident.
It was that experience that prompted her to write Inside All, a lyrical children’s book detailing the connections that make up our lives, no matter who we are. The book was recently published by Dawn Publications, a California-based company specializing in children’s books that focus on nature. It’s illustrated by Minnesota artist Holly Welch.
Mason said the hardcover picture book didn’t take long to write or revise, as the rhythm of the words flowed. “It all kind of came out of one sitting,” she said. “It’s trying to convey that incredible sense of warmth that comes from knowing that interconnectedness.”
Glenn Hovemann, editor at Dawn Publications, said the publishing company “found her manuscript intriguing and attractive because in just a few words she offers children a vision of a vast universe, and yet assures them of their place securely within it.”
The book, with sumptuous colors and swirling text, begins by explaining how inside a vast universe is a planet, and then on that planet are lands, and on those lands are villages, and so on until she gets to the heart that beats inside a sleeping child.
“A connection with the ‘all’ is so peaceful and satisfying that people can spend their whole lives trying to resurrect the awareness of cosmic connection that may come in a flash, especially to children,” said Hovemann.
Mason, who works full time for Blue Cross Blue Shield, has written as a hobby since youth. But it wasn’t until her sister died unexpectedly a little less than a decade ago that she started to focus more on her writing. “It does really bring into focus what matters to you,” she said. She attended writing conferences and used the Internet to kickstart her writing career, while her three children, Kammy, 20, Isaac, 18, and Eliza, 15, offered constructive criticism on manuscripts.
In addition to the sheer limitlessness of imagination that comes with writing for children, the genre also seemed to just, well, fit with Mason’s particular worldview. “My instinct is not to write stories with a lot of cynicism and irony,” she said. Children’s literature “seemed to get at essential truths and were not obscured by the tendency to get maudlin.” That, and the fact that children’s books hold a power that other types of literature don’t.
“I love the idea of getting kids excited about reading,” she said. “When you’re writing for kids, I think there’s a power of connection that you can give them.”
Next up for Mason is These Hands, recently picked up by publishing giant Houghton Mifflin. The book tells the story of an African-American grandfather who endured racial discrimination talking to his grandson.
“It kind of ends with an affirmation that the little boy can do what his grandfather couldn’t,” said Mason. It’s the type of story Mason hopes will impact children in a way that only the stories of youth can.
— Mirror Newspapers – Megan Pennefather (September 21, 2008)
Beginning with the universe and working inward to the heart of a child, this is a “nesting” storybook, designed to draw attention to the interconnectedness we all have with our world. The illustrations are vibrant as page by page they move closer into the child’s sphere: the village, the home, the bed and until finally, “inside your heart is all, love overflowing.” The text is simple and the illustrations are pleasing to look at. It’s a comforting bedtime story for the very young.
— New Jersey Youth Services – Jennifer Locke (October 2008)
Beginning with the universe and working inward to the heart of a child, this is a “nesting” storybook, designed to draw attention to the interconnectedness we all have with our world. The illustrations are vibrant as page by page they move closer into the child’s sphere: the village, the home, the bed and until finally, “inside your heart is all, love overflowing.” The text is simple and the illustrations are pleasing to look at. It’s a comforting bedtime story for the very young.
— New Jersey Youth Services – Jennifer Locke (March 2010)
Inside All is a journey from the universe into the heart of a child, reminding us that we are all a part of the “ALL” and the “ALL” is inside us.
— Mother Rising (February 2009)
Beginning with the great starry universe and step by step on a nesting doll-like journey the reader is taken to the nestled heart of a child. Vibrant mixed media illustrations in combination with natural easy rhyme convey that we all have a safe place in the often overwhelming expanse of our surroundings. We belong inside all, connected to nature.
— Decorah Public Library Reviews (December 2009)
This book takes us on a journey inside the starry universe, then to a galaxy, a planet, and eventually we find ourselves snuggled in a cozy bed; from there we move into our own hearts where we find all and love overflowing. The illustrations by Holly Welch are aglow with color and movement. A delightful glimpse of Oneness.
— Light of Consciousness (Autumn 2009)
Moving from universe to galaxy, from planet to village home, to one sleeping child, this unusually sensitive picture book shows how each of us is connected to nature and the immense universe in very personal ways.
— Topeka Capital-Journal – Barbara & Gary Bleeker (December 20, 2008)
Inside All by Margaret H. Mason, illustrated by Holly Welch, is a picture book that tells about “the comfort of knowing that they belong, that they are part of something meaningful.” My favorite lines in the book are “Inside you Is a heart Pure and glowing. Inside your heart Is all Love overflowing.” I like this book. I give it 3 out of 5 books.
— ChildrensAuthorBook.blogspot.com – Lily Erlic (July 16, 2008)
Inside All is A Sharing Nature With Children Book from Dawn Publications. The book starts with the universe and then works its way down each level through the galaxy, planet, etc., continuing on through the heart inside you.
“That is what the universe looks like?”
“What is a galaxy?”
“I know what a planet is! That is like Earth that we live on!”
“I have a heart inside me too!”
“Look, that star is on every page!”
“The pictures in this book are different than other books. They are all swirly and dotty.”
Parent’s comments:
The back cover of the book lists the recommend age group for “Inside All” as 3-8. I would have to agree and maybe even up it a year to ages 4-8. At age 2, Max had no interest in the book at all. The illustrations were not eye-catching for him and the text was over his head. At age 4, Cayden grasped some of the story that was being told but it was still a little too deep for him. I like the message being conveyed “about how we each have a place in the All, and how the All lives in each of us” but I am not sure my children understood completely. The story and illustrations are unique and for children in the older end of this age group the book would be wonderful!
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Kids Reader Views – Reviewed by Cayden (age 4) and Max (age 2) and Mom (August 2008)
