Andrea Skyberg

Squircle is a such a delightfully silly word that children will love simply to hear it and repeat it. A story about interconnectedness and dealing with fear, anger, and other negative emotions, Squircle follows a young girl named Evie as she heads off on a small adventure, encountering helpful forest creatures along the way. Each animal offers thoughtful and calming advice, and Evie eventually realizes how connected she is with them all. Squircle reflects Skyberg’s passion for understanding and promoting the connections that exist among all living creatures. Evie s story is meant to show how she is connected to the world around her, and how recognizing that interconnectedness helps her learn to live in the moment, with greater tolerance and less anger and fear. –Foreword Reviews

Squircle is a fantastic representative collaboration between artist/author Andrea Skyberg and students of five Wisconsin schools, creating fabric applique murals and artworks about a central theme of interconnectedness. These completed large murals are woven into a creative story about Evie a girl who carries a ball or red twine, a box and a twig into the forest. At first Evie wants to catch a squirrel, so she makes a trap from her box and then becomes angry when the squirrel eludes her trap. Her first lesson is titled Duckflap, illustrated by a beautiful fabric mural of a duck who flaps to set anger free. Evie goes on to learn five important lessons in interconnectedness, living in the present, learning to listen to her inner voice, flowing through life without resisting what happens, and finally, Squircle, an experience of coming full circle by sharing a connection with all beings and things. Each enlightenment is fabulously interpreted by a joint project fabric art mural made, and retained by a different school. The narrative pictures in black and white with red twine help describe the inner journey completed by Evie. A truly unique creative feature of Squircle is the creative connecting of two words to make a new joint concept, like Duckflap, Fishflow, Right -Now-A-Pillar Time,Deerly Listen, and of course, Squircle. Squircle is a truly wonderful children’s book that has to be savored, published by Wooden Nickel Press, whose mission is described as to publish books that exhibit an original & inspired connection between storytelling and fine art. Certainly the quality of art and storytelling displayed in Squircle is extremely fine, deserving wide acclaim and deeply educational enjoyment. Although Squircle is technically a children’s book, easily accessible to those age 6 and up, adults will also find it fascinating and rewarding to read and examine. What a gift to all! –Midwest Book Review