Working in his grandfather's studio, a boy helps him prepare etchings for a studio sale. He sees the painstaking processes through which an etching in process moves. The boy helps with many steps and while hand-coloring some prints, he imagines himself within their stories. A two-page spread at the end diagrams how an etching is made, and one reproduction of an etching shows the studio with supplies and equipment labeled. Alert young readers will discover references to some of Geisert's other published books for children, including Pigs from A to Z (1986); The Ark (1988); Aesop & Company written by Barbara Bader (1991); Oink (1991); Pigs from 1 to 10 (1992); Oink, Oink (1994); After the Flood (1994); and Roman Numerals I to MM (1996), all published by Houghton Mifflin. Readers familiar with Galena, Illinois, will notice familiar landscapes. The illustrations were etched on copper and hand-colored using the technique,dtools and equipment shown in the story. (Ages 5-9)

A young boy helps his grandfather, an etcher, prepare for a year-end studio print sale. The boy's most important task is to color each etching by hand. His mind begins to wander into the world of art as he imagines himself within the very pictures he is coloring, exploring distant lands and flying over his town in a hot-air balloon. Using a young boy and his grandfather as guides, Arthur Geisert explains the process involved in the intricate art of etching, while his colorful illustrations demonstrate the elegance and beauty of this unique art form.