Whodunit the PictureBook Style – 2-in-1 Wordless Mysteries by Fernando Krahn: Catch that Cat (1978) and The Mystery of the Giant Footprints (1977)

Since we can not get enough of this Chilean cartoonist who recently passed away this February 2010, we do a tribute to some of Fernando Krahn’s works. While we have already featured a 2-in-1 of Amanda and the Mysterious Carpet and his The Creepy Thing (as could be found here), I figured it would not hurt to do another 2-in-1 Whodunit Wordless Picturebook perfect for our Bimonthly theme “When Words are Not Enough” for this March-April, 2011.

The Mystery of the Giant Footprints (1977)

Snowy Gingerbread Cottages. Now that it’s extremely humid in this part of the world, it is refreshing to read/view books that have a cold-wintry feel to it. Kind of reminds me of our feature of Raymond Briggs’ The Snowman and Krahn’s Self-Made Snowman. This one, though, has a whodunit feel to it with mysterious giant footprints in the snow, missing children, and a chase through the snowy forest with only footprints as clues. No murder, crime, nor mayhem. But mystery? A resounding yes.

Footprints in the Snow. The book begins with a family in the dining table, their routine disrupted by something odd and mysterious outside the window.

Now how would you feel if you see giant unknown tracks right outside your door – out in the middle of the woods during winter time? It is not surprising then that the father in the story immediately turned to his rifle hanging firmly on the wall.

Intrepid Explorers and Clues that Lead you to the Heart of the Mystery. While the adult’s instinct is self-preservation and protection, we see that our two children have a different thought in mind. Rather than flee or cower in fear, they went right into the heart of the mystery – their curiosity guiding them. What creature is making such giant footprints in the snow? And so, the reader is now shown three sets of footprints as we see how the children chase after the mysterious creature.

The parents are now, inevitably, beside themselves. Frantic at the thought of their children being out there with whatever creature is leaving such a huge print in the snow. Krahn takes us then into this journey ala Finding Nemo of both parents (and most of the townsfolk armed with their own rifles) searching for the missing children across frozen lakes…

and across something as dangerous as this log in the middle of the woods.

Truly great to be reminded on occasion of the fearlessness of youth and the feeling of invulnerability that only childhood can bring. I shall leave it to you to discover whether the children were found in the end and exactly what kind of creature leaves such huge footprints.

Catch that Cat (1978)

Where the Black Cat leads, I shall follow. While technically this book does not have that mysterious quality similar to the Giant Footprints, or any hint of crime that needs solving, I feel that chasing a creature across the streets, the plank of the ship docks, and being accidentally taken in as cargo for a long voyage that you do not know anything about gives that feeling of excitement, danger, and breathtaking uncertainty that only the wordless art of Fernando Krahn can bring.

We are then swept into this young boy’s adventure as he focuses his energies on nothing but the cat and his intention to catch this fleeing, flying and extremely agile black creature that jumps from one place to the next.

Lost at Sea. Things become a tad complicated when this cat ventures into the ship docks where quite a number of ships are waiting for their cargo before they depart for some faraway foreign land (one of the huge crates even has “Singapore” stamped to it – how nice). We see in the book image below how our little boy, unmindful of any kind of trouble that may befall him, chased the cat down this open wooden crate:

Unbeknownst to our little explorer, this cargo belongs to a vessel named Catalina which is now about to depart. Hah. While the boy finally caught up with his elusive cat, he is in for greater trouble than he bargained for.

Leap of Faith and Taking the Journey wherever it Leads. What is most significant for me in these two books is the reminder from Krahn’s children that sometimes all it takes is a leap of faith. Yes, there are dangers that lurk everywhere and oftentimes our pathways take us to the most unexpected places we may have never dreamed of going. These children show us this value of risk-taking to accomplish their goal, to satisfy their curiosity, and their faith that yes, things are gonna be alright.

I also take a moment to share with you some of my gingerbread house photos as inspired by Krahn’s Mystery of the Giant Footprints. And so while we are baking in the heat and humidity here, I get cooled by these lovely photos and the recollection of winter. =)

Picture Book Challenge Update: 46/47 of 72

The Mystery of the Giant Footprints by Fernando Krahn. E. P. Dutton New York, 1977. Book borrowed from the NIE Library.

Catch that Cat by Fernando Krahn. E. P. Dutton, New York, 1978. Book borrowed from the NIE Library.