About the Author

JOHN SOBOL is an author, musician and poet who has performed at festivals and clubs in a dozen countries. His first picture book, Friend or Foe (illustrated by Dasha Tolstikova), was described in Brain Pickings as “a charming modern-day fable.” He has toured an acclaimed one-man show called Two Million Years of Technology, and he has written many popular TV shows for children, including Pippi Longstocking and Under the Umbrella Tree. John is a father and a feminist. He lives in Ottawa.

DASHA TOLSTIKOVA is the author and illustrator of The Bad Chair and A Year Without Mom, which received four starred reviews and was selected as an USBBY Outstanding International Book. Dasha has illustrated several picture books, including Violet and the Woof by Rebecca Grabill, Friend or Foe? by John Sobol and The Jacket by Kirsten Hall. Her illustrations have also appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the New Yorker. She lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Reviews

A quiet, thoughtful narrative for all readers who like to wonder.
*Kirkus Reviews*

Sobol's original and engaging story is perfectly complemented by Dasha Tolstikova's subtle yet striking illustrations. Beautifully produced, exceptionally entertaining.
*Midwest Book Review*

The story is stark and ambiguous … It’s this understatedness that lets the book’s sly humour land.
*The Globe and Mail*

With quiet artwork and a story that has a fable-like quality to it, this title presents a unique addition to the picture book field.
*Resource Links*

A charming modern-day fable, without a simplistic moral, about what makes for and what undoes the sense of otherness.
*Brain Pickings*