Simon at the Art Museum

A little boy visits an art museum for the first time in this fun, sweet picture book about first experiences and seeing things from new perspectives.

Simon is having a great time at the museum with his parents. There are slippery, slidey floors! Pigeons flying around the reflecting pool! And cheesecake in the café! But they’re not really here for any of that. No, Simon has to look at art.

And more art.

So. Much. Art.

There’s so much art that soon Simon needs to take a break and finds somewhere to sit. From his bench, he begins to notice how many different people are visiting the museum and the many different ways they react to the art they see. Some people are alone. Some are in groups. Some people smile. Some shake their heads. Some even shed a tear.

And Simon is right in the center of it, watching until he’s inspired to give all the art another try. By the end of the day, he may even find a piece that can rival a slice of cheesecake!

Christina Soontornvat is the author of the middle grade novel A Wish in the Dark and The Blunders: A Counting Catastrophe. She is passionate about STEAM learning, which stands for science, technology, engineering, art, and math. This story was inspired by a trip with her young daughters to her favorite art museum in Fort Worth, Texas (which has excellent cheesecake). You can visit Christina online at Soontornvat.com.

Christine Davenier’s favorite dessert is profiterole au chocolat. She is the illustrator of many books for children including the Iris and Walter series by Elissa Haden Guest and The First Thing My Mama Told Me by Susan Marie Swanson, for which Christine received a New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Children’s Book of the Year Award. She lives in Paris.