I don't understand the hype about the Fan brothers' books. Mostly grey, no humor, message ambiguous, no adventure... do children like them? Young me certainly would not have, any more than either I or my inner child do. I guess there's a good message about profit & exploitation, but I don't think it succeeds. ( )

I thought this sweet and whimsical picture book offers an interesting perspective -- to look at an everyday object from a bug's point of view. Another review noted that most of the bugs are male except the ladybug and luna moth - I noted that as well while reading. I am also not sure about the anti-capitalist message (with the greedy spider) thrown in, but I did enjoy the introduction of "new" objects to the story. The illustrations are great - I enjoyed the use of color versus black & white illustrations. ( )

Yet another amazingly illustrated book by the joint time of Terry and Erik Fan, bothers who together produce captivating, highly imaginative books.

Something bright and shiny, encapsulated in a ball, falls from the sky. All the bugs gather round guessing and wondering what this is. It is the spider who acts in a self-serving manner by holding a exhibit by charging the fee of one green leaf. Soon his leaves are stacked rapidly. His "Wonderville" was a joy to behold. Soon, though all the critters left, and suddenly a large hand scooped up his treasure.

Alone alone, with no one who wants to help him in his selfishness. Soon, all was forgotten and the wind carried away the leaves. As his lonliness increased, he looked to the sky to find shooting stars and a source of bright light. Quickly, the spider wove many webs from high flowers. And, then more items fell from the sky, landing on the earth below.

Now, the spider learned a lesson not to be selfish. He happily shared his exhibit free of charge. And, all the bugs agreed that this was a marvelous sight to behold -- infact, it was the most amazing thing they ever saw.

Captivated by the work of the Fan Brothers since their first book The Night Gardener, I believe I've read all of their works.

This is another five star marvel of illustrations and text! The Fan Brothers are magical! ( )

The pictures captured me! ( )

Read at the Carle

When a beautiful colored marble "falls from the sky" into the grayscale world on the ground, all the insects admire and wonder at it - but Spider capitalizes on it, creating an "exhibit" in his web and charging visitors. Spider's scheme only works for so long, however, before visitors stay away and a giant hand reaches down to pluck the marble back. Spider builds webs to catch other treasures, viewing of which will be free. ( )

When a wonderful thing falls from the sky, all of the insects in the garden marvel at its beauty, and wonder what it is. Frog thinks it is a gumdrop, Grasshopper that is it a fallen star or planet, and Luna Moth that it is a magical chrysalis. But when Spider arrives, he immediately perceives that what it truly is, is an opportunity. Spinning his web around the luminously colorful globe, he claims it as his own, and builds an amusement park attraction around it, raking in the "money" (AKA leaves) from all the other residents. But as he grows ever greedier, the other creatures lose interest in his show, and stop paying to see the things that fell from the sky. Then, when a five-fingered creature from the sky snatches the wondrous globe away, Spider is left alone, with nothing. It is only when he perceives that the moon above shares her light with all, even a greedy spider, that he understands what he must do...

I have been a great admirer of the Fan Brothers since the 2016 publication of their debut picture-book, The Night Gardener. I find the stories they tell magical, and the artwork they produce astonishingly beautiful. What a talented family! Needless to say, when I heard that It Fell from the Sky was due out this year, I was most eager to track it down. I'm happy to report that it did not disappoint, offering an enchanting story of a human object that finds its way into the animal world, with unexpected results; and absolutely gorgeous illustrations, as expressive as they are lovely. The story here - readers will immediately perceive that the "wonder," which is never named in the text, is a marble - reminded me a bit of Elsa Beskow's classic, The Sun Egg, in which a woodland elf comes upon an orange and thinks that it is a celestial body come to earth. Spider's reformation - inspired by the moon, he learns to share the wonders that come from the sky - provides a natural, and heartwarming conclusion to the tale. As for the visuals, the artwork here is breathtaking. Mostly black and white, with vividly colorful accents - the rainbow marble, the green leaves used by the insects as payment - it is immediately engrossing, playing with light and shade in a most beautiful way, and perfectly capturing the expressions and character of each insect character. Highly, highly recommended, to all fellow Fan fans, and to picture-book readers who appreciate both engaging stories with heartfelt messages and beautiful artwork. ( )

Vivid grays and whites create a capturing world and setting the perfect background for a wonder, which changes everything.

It fell from the sky, a glorious ball of color. None of the insects and other creatures living in the grass and weeds know what it is, but they know it's amazing. After various attempts to figure it out, the spiders steps up with an idea, which allows everyone to watch it in a wondrous setting...one that can be seen after paying a small entrance fee of a leaf. As things grow and grow, all seems spectacular, but then, disaster strikes.

To say that the illustrations are amazing is an understatement. The details of the grass world comes to life with vibrant exactness thanks to the defined grays and whites. Not only are these well done, but it allows the marvelous object, which fell from the sky, to truly capture the attention. This is as masterful play as it also demonstrates why and how the insects can find this item so miraculous. It stays at the center until it's not. It's a visual tale in and of itself.

But to say the tale isn't just as capturing would simply be wrong. Various creatures from the grass play with ideas of what the item could be. It's entertaining and curious to watch them marvel over an object listeners will recognize. As the spider comes in and changes everything, the story grabs and keeps listeners waiting to see how it all turns out. It's a capturing tale with a very good message and is sure to become a favorite. I'm definitely adding this one to my list of favorite picture books for 2021.

I received an ARC copy and would give this one 6 stars if I could because it completely won me over ( )