The Garden of Abdul Gasazi by Chris Van Allsburg

A dog or a duck? That is the question.  The Garden of Abdul Gasazi, the first book by Chris Van Allsburg, is about a dog watching job turned magical adventure.  The main character, Alan Mitz, is a responsible boy whose world is transformed briefly due to the trickery, or possibly magic, of his neighbor Mr. Abdul Gasazi, a retired magician.   The dialog of Mr. Gasazi and Alan is realistic and reveals more about the chatacters’ personalities and motivations.  I happen to read this book aloud and found myself naturally using different voices for these characters.  Additionally, the plot and character development was definitely “shown” and not “told” to the readers.  These successful story elements, along with the magnificent illustrations, qualify this book as top quality children’s literature.  However, I personally was not satisfied with the ending.  I think children might find it too predictable, and since the author did choose to go this route with the ending, I think the connection between the dog and duck should’ve been more pronounced.   

The illustrations left nothing to be desired.  The impeccable detail, seen in the furniture, clothing, and nature scenes, makes this fantastical story very realistic and accessible to young children.  There is a lot of traveling and action in this story and Van Allsburg is effective at depicting this movement in his artwork.  The pages containing the words are outlined by a border, adding to the aesthetic appeal of the book.  Lastly, all illustrations are done in black and white but this does not seem to inhibit the appeal of the pictures or take anything away from the story.  By the looks of the clothing worn by the characters, it appears that the setting of this book is the nineteen thirties or forties, and the black and white hues help develop this setting.  Also, the sole use of black and white seems to emphasize the fantastical, mysterious mood of the book. 

As I was reading this novel, childhood memories of my own dog sitting days came back to me.  I think this book lends itself to lessons on responsibility and what to do in unexpected situations.  It would be a great opportunity for students to speculate about, and possibly journal about, how they would react if faced with a similar scenario.  Moral questions are also raised by this story and these can be utilized for class discussion.  One example of a moral question is, if the dog hadn’t come back should Alan be blamed?  I think it would also be great to read this story to students without showing them the pictures and have them draw their own pictures for scenes.  This a great exercise because it allows students to fully use their imaginations as well as leads to class discussions on what illustrations add and take away from stories. 
Year Published: 1979          Awards:  Caldecott Medal and Boston Globe Award