Quiet!

Quiet! tells the story of Mister Martin, a solitary man who revels in peace and quiet in the calm of his apartment. Mister Martin’s neighbours are aware of his predilection for silence and do their best to keep things quiet, but, caught up in carnival-like street festivities, they soon forget to keep their voices down and the noise escalates, driving Mister Martin to yell out his window demanding quiet. At the end of his rope, Mister Martin seeks a solution from a shopkeeper, saying he cannot stand the noise any longer. The shopkeeper offers an expensive remedy, and Mister Martin, desperate for an escape from the noise, coughs up the money and brings his new purchase home. By Mister Martin’s following the store instructions to add water, remove the netting and dip the frame in and out, the item is revealed to be an expanding bubble that soon engulfs Mister Martin along with the interior of his apartment and then his entire building and backyard. Upon discovering that this bubble is soundproof and that all the noise of the neighbourhood has been entirely blocked out, Mister Martin is overjoyed and celebrates the silence, enjoying his newspaper, coffee and nap in tranquility

After an initially blissful several days of uninterrupted coffee drinking, newspaper reading and nap taking, Mister Martin realizes the extent to which he’s cut himself off from the rest of society, and the silence becomes “deafening”. Mister Martin feels suddenly alone in the world, a prisoner of the silence that was once his dearest wish, and he pleads for help from mostly deaf ears. Luckily, one day, a small boy hears “Mister Martin’s silence speaking volumes” and alerts others to their neighbour’s predicament. Many attempt to crack the impenetrable bubble of silence but with no luck. In the end, after the bubble stymies the mailman and the lion-tamer, it is a group of small children who take on the bubble, creating a small sound with their vocal chords, a sound which grows and grows, eventually shattering the bubble loudly and creating a sound Mister Martin unexpectedly celebrates. Not cut off from the world any longer, Mister Martin embraces the “sweet music of life” and dances joyously to the everyday noise he once shunned.

In this be-careful-what-you-wish-for tale, Céline Claire reflects on the importance of our connections to the world around us, connections which, though irritating at times, are a crucial part of our lives as we know them. Child readers will delight at Mister Martin’s initially grumpy behaviour and the ridiculousness of his bubble solution while still understanding the story’s subtly delivered message of the beauty of the world outside one’s bubble (particularly in the time of COVID-19).

Magali Le Huche’s charming illustrations thoughtfully depict the story’s solitary protagonist and his peaceful home in detail, granting the quiet solitary scenes and lively neighbourhood festivities equal weight and visual depth. Older readers won’t be able to view the book’s picturesque depictions of European streets and circus-like scenes without thinking of Ludwig Bemelmans’ classic “Madeline books”, Le Huche’s illustrations echoing a similar Parisian sensibility that honours the classic and the eccentric in equal measure. Le Huche does a particularly good job depicting Mister Martin’s emotional state as well his disconnect from society by leeching the world outside of his bubble of colour in the later scenes, visually representing the jarring silence Mister Martin is experiencing.

Quiet! offers a charming pandemic-era picture book highlighting the importance of being a part of a community and how even the most solitary of people need human connection outside of their “bubbles”. Fans of Ludwig Bemelmans’ “Madeline” series will also enjoy the similar style and tone, combining whimsy and the picturesque with occasionally darker subject matter.