Illustrated with intricate watercolors by the author, this book functions on two very different levels. The story, which takes up the first two-thirds of the book, is fairly simple. One story decides it’s the most important in all the world, so it gobbles all the other stories into itself until it is the only One. Everything inside the One is blackness, until one brave little collection of words speaks up and asks the One if it truly contains every word to every story. The One agrees that it must, and with that realization it explodes into many beautiful colors, each with its own script.

On this level, the book can be read as a positive tale about bullying. On the other level, this book deals with far more complex ideas. Each story is not only represented by it’s own circle of color, but also contains its own distinct script within that circle. And each script is based on an actual current or historical script. The last third of the book includes an author’s note, an explanation of some of the characters contained in the book, and a world map displaying the locations of the fifty scripts used in the book. At this level, it is a powerful argument for the preservation of linguistic diversity and the cultures they represent.

One and Everything is a fascinating book that defies categorization. It appears to be a children’s picture book on the cover (sold for grades 2-5), and reads like one for two-thirds of the book, but then it morphs into a non-fiction homage to epigraphy (the study of writing systems and scripts). Simultaneously, it is a beautifully executed book of art. I would encourage any readers who might be interested to borrow a copy of this book, read it, and form your own opinions as to who the intended audience should be, then decide whether or not it would work in your library.

Reviewed by Crystal Wilder, University of Southern Maine, Gorham Campus Library