Basically A Children's Book

What makes the Maria Kalman's The Principles of Uncertainty so unique is that essentially, it is a children's book designed for adults. The typical structure of a children's book is usually an outrageous and dream-like fantasy that teaches children a lesson. The characters and setting are colorful and full of life, so children will stay engaged and fully absorb what the moral or lesson of the story. However, as we grow up storybooks start to dissolve. Picture books become a distant childhood memory, and are replaced with dense and wordy books. There are no pictures, only neatly typed small words spread across each page. I think it's become this social standard thing that everything needs to become black and white and much more boring after childhood. 

So, Kalman has challenged this and basically done the impossible–she created a children's book for adults. She takes very real and adult subjects yet indicates them through storybook illustrations. Kalman has created a safety blanket for readers as she has never lost sight of her inner-child and has applied it to her book. Her words are written in scribbles on the side of the pages, and her illustrations are loud and colorful. Characters are shown through various colors, and there are lots of flowers and fruit bowls. While this book is not telling a story in sequence and feels a bit random at times, Kalman creates a fun, creative, and safe atmosphere to talk about growing up, life changes, love, and even death. When talking about her father visiting his friend in a nursing home, and she describes it in such a magical and fairy-tale way as she compares the interaction to the fairy-tale Humpty Dumpty. 

Like the other works of literature we've read this summer, Kalman opens up the discussion of difficult topics through humor and creativity. She taps into the child in all of us and rather than having us face a cold and unwelcoming book, her piece is full of color and life, making it much easier for us to understand and reflect upon real life situations.

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