Out of the Blue - by Rebecca Bach-Lauritsen (Hardcover)

About the Book

In a house where everything is arranged just so, a boy's usual, solitary routine is disrupted by the sudden appearance of a bear, and now things are no longer orderly and he falls asleep lying on Bear's belly.

Book Synopsis

A boy's usual routine is shaken up by the sudden appearance of a bear in Out of the Blue, an award-winning Danish picture book from author Rebecca Bach-Lauritsen and illustrator Anna Margrethe Kjærgaard about embracing surprise, adapting to change, and welcoming new friendships.

Translated from Danish by Michael Favala Goldman

A 2025 Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year!
One of Betsy Bird's Top 15 Translated Children's Picture Books of 2024!

In a house where everything is arranged just so, there lives a boy whose days are filled with peace, quiet, and solitude. Every morning, he wakes up and follows the exact same routine, without fail... until the day something new appears, out of the blue: a bear!

In this imaginative and empowering picture book, a meticulous child steps out of his comfort zone of control and opens himself up to unfamiliar and unexpected experiences.

Thanks to author Bach-Lauritsen's poetic text, fluidly translated by Goldman from Danish to English, and the spare, highly communicative, and absorbing illustrations from Kirkus Prize for Young Readers finalist Kjærgaard, this is a sensitive, encouraging story about how embracing change can lead to trust and friendship!

Review Quotes

A 2025 Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year! "A boy's lonely existence is upended by the arrival of an energetic bear. Soft greyscale drawings with spots of blue and brown."-- "Bank Street College of Education"

Selected for the Children's Book Council spring 2024 showcase: Transformation

One of Betsy Bird's Top 15 Translated Children's Picture Books of 2024! "A sweet, strange tale of finding unexpected friends. I always like it when a book works on its own internal logic and damned be the consequences. Here we have a boy living entirely on his own, as seen in such books as Bink & Gollie. He's drawn in rather a standard, illustrated manner. The bear who comes to occupy the house with him reminded me a lot of how someone like Matthew Cordell will suddenly place a highly realistic wild animal into a picture book, surprising and delighting the reader. At its heart, this is a story about loneliness and finding a kindred spirit. Plus who doesn't want their own bear to play airplane with? A subtle, sweet delight."--Betsy Bird "A Fuse #8 Production (A School Library Journal blog)"

STARRED REVIEW! ★ "Warm and lovely. The prose uses simple repetition, sound effects, and onomatopoeia to artfully set the boy's lonely stage. The illustrations are as poetic--simultaneously sparse and detailed--as the thoughtful and limited text... The elegant and softly rendered style is a wonderful juxtaposition to the surprising brown swaths of luxurious bear fur. Translated from the original Danish, the storyteller and illustrator take their time luxuriating in this wholly original tale... Every page is a tiny treasure."-- "Booklist"

"Gorgeous and thoughtful... [With its] delicate sepia-toned pencil drawings [and a] brief, poetic text, ... children will be begging to spend a few more minutes lingering over each intricate page, catching the numerous cactus paintings and looking for eagle feathers, frisbees, and blue scribbles... Recommended for children who dream of an imaginary playmate and appreciate nontraditional formats and stories."-- "Susan Harari, Keefe Library, Boston Latin School, Youth Services Book Review"

"Reassuring to reflective readers facing life or family changes."-- "Kirkus"

"This Danish import is a gentle testament to friendship, the potential for growth and change, and the sheer exhilaration of letting go."-- "The Horn Book"

About the Author

Rebecca Bach-Lauritsen is an acclaimed Danish writer who continuously explores the ways of words. She has received numerous awards for her artistic work in both literature and audio-visual storytelling. Out of the Blue is her first book to be published in the United States.

Anna Margrethe Kjærgaard is a well-established Danish illustrator. She has received numerous awards, including the Danish Ministry of Culture Illustrator Award. Coffee, Rabbit, Snowdrop, Lost, her first book published in the United States, received glowing reviews and was a 2022 finalist for the prestigious Kirkus Prize in the Young Readers' category, as well as a 2022 Batchelder Honor book.

Michael Favala Goldman is a translator of Danish literature, poet, and jazz clarinetist. He has translated 17 books of Danish poetry and prose, including Tove Ditlevsen's Dependency, one of the New York Times's Ten Best Books of 2021. Goldman's five books of original poetry include Small Sovereign, which won first prize at the 2022 Los Angeles Book Festival. He lives in Northampton, MA.