Miss Mildred Meets the Bare-Naked Owl

Miss Mildred is a lively and eccentric old lady with a unique set of tastes. One day as she sets off for a ride in her rickety old car, the whole thing falls apart, and she finds herself face to face with a very peculiar owl – a completely naked one! As they exchange stories, Miss Mildred and the owl find they have a lot in common and a lot to share.

Miss Mildred and the Bare-Naked Owl reads as a unique and irreverent story, with descriptions of the lead character’s house and habits, and paints a vivid picture of a woman who lives by her own rules. Narrated in rhyme, the book is easy to get through and has a nice rhythm, but the story ends up being too “nonsensical” for its own good, with an ending that does not feel earned, entitled or explained. As readers turn to the last page, they can’t help but wonder if maybe a few other pages were missing in between.

The book would also have greatly benefitted from an illustrator with a bit more experience. While the work shows potential for growth, it is still a little raw and in need of some extra passes. The human character is sometimes a bit unsettling – which does not seem intentional - the colors are not very well coordinated, and the illustrations and spreads have an unfinished look about them. The style is unique, however, and feels like it would fit very well in a humor publication, magazine editorial or something targeted at an older audience.

Miss Mildred and the Bare-Naked Owl would also have been improved by better graphic design. The font feels outdated and not appropriate for the style of the illustrations or the theme of the story. The black color of the font also disappears in some of the spreads, and the page layout could have used a bit more polish. While I have no doubts there was a solid idea behind this story, it simply did not translate, and the visuals are not appealing specifically to children or adults. In fact, the subject matter and illustrations make it difficult to define who exactly the target audience for the book is meant to be.