Kandace Stephenson
LIS 617 Fall 2012
Picture Book Analysis
If one were asked to name a book that exemplifies the format of the picture book, Not a
Box by Antoinette Portis would do the job. While deceptively simplistic in both its text and
aesthetic qualities, Not a Box effectively incorporates design elements that link directly to the
thematic material of the story. In this book, design elements such as line and shape, color and
value, perspective, space, and composition combine with the Portis’ chosen media to create a
visual experience that is matched perfectly to the text. This text, though minimal, follows picture
book design conventions including patterned language and pacing. This interaction of text and
pictures is deliberately designed to further the themes of imagination and independence
throughout Not a Box.
The textual structure of Not a Box is in accordance with many typical qualities of picture
book texts. Not a Box is a prime example of patterned language, particularly repetition.
Repetition makes reading books a more approachable task for young readers, or in many cases,
for young aspiring readers. In From Cover to Cover Horning states that repetitions create a
“familiar, expected pattern to make children feel comfortable,” and that repetition is a valuable
form of the patterned speech that characterizes picture books (Horning, 2010, p. 90). This
repetition grants the text an amount of predictability that helps children to anticipate the
storyline, participate in the reading process, and begin to associate the printed words with their
spoken counterparts.
Another element of the text of Not A Box that coincides with accepted principles of
picture book design is pacing. The text, both the questions asked by the seemingly dense adult
as well as the responses from the little bunny, progresses steadily throughout the book. The
adult’s question changes each time the bunny uses the box in a new way, eventually becoming a
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bit more irritable or impatient as on the pages that read “Now you’re wearing a box?” and “Are
you still standing around in that box?” The bunny’s responses slowly add more to the repeated
statement that the box is, in fact, “not a box,” ending with the bunny’s exclamation “It’s NOT
NOT NOT NOT a box!” This pacing is consistent with the traditional framework of a story
(exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution) that we have discussed in class to be
characteristic of easy-reader picture books as well as books of more difficult reading levels. The
pacing of the text is also perfectly matched to the illustrations, a prime example being the page
opposite “It’s NOT NOT NOT NOT a box!” that includes (for the first and only time in the
book) not one, but four images of the bunny on his imaginary adventures.
The illustrations in this book are truly characteristic of a picture book as they not only
enrich the story, but drive it and define its meaning. The illustrations are minimalistic, with flat
line drawings being the only form of media. While the little bunny’s imaginative activities and
destinations could have been conveyed using fanciful three-dimensional drawings or more
complex forms of media, I think the line drawings are appropriately paired with the theme of the
story. The bunny is physically working with minimal materials but is able to create anything he
likes in his head, and I think the clean and thick line drawing form of illustration is a design
element consciously chosen to foster this idea.
Not a Box, thanks to its line drawing style of illustration, demonstrates nearly textbook
uses of the design elements of line and shape. The little bunny is made up of curves and rounded
shapes, which we have discussed in class as conveying a feeling of comfort and familiarity. This
natural feeling of comfort allows readers to identify with the bunny and creates a connection
between the reader and the main character of the book. In Picture This: How Pictures Work
Molly Bang describes horizontal lines as providing a sense of stability, which is what the
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grounded image of the box gives to each picture in the story. The vertical elements of the little
bunny, particularly his perky ears, lend to the story a quality of excitement, activity, and energy,
to which Bang also attests. This is particularly evident on the page of Not a Box on which the
little rabbit has climbed to the top of Rabbit Peak and even his arms are reaching for the sky,
visually indicating the excitement he feels from his imaginary accomplishment. Finally, Portis
makes significant use of the design element of diagonals. In the pages preceding the beginning
of the story the little rabbit can be seen struggling to push and pull his box to the first page where
he will begin his adventures, and the diagonal line of his body indicates the energy he is feeding
into this task. Additionally, diagonal shapes are integral aspects of the final pages on which the
bunny blasts off into space in his Not-a-Box. Bang states that “diagonal shapes are dynamic
because they imply motion or tension” (Bang, 2000, p. 46). It is on account of this use of
diagonal shapes that the power of the little bunny’s imagination is conveyed to the reader.
While the design elements of color and value are not the same, I believe they are linked
in valuable ways in Not a Box. The color palette used in this book is limited. The pages on
which the adult speaks are the color of the little bunny’s cardboard box, and the background
behind the bunny opposite those pages, undoubtedly what this adult questioner is seeing, is plain
white. However, the bunny’s “not a box” responses always greet the reader on a red
background, and the drawings of his imagination place the black line drawn bunny and box in a
red line drawn adventure on a bright yellow background. This color scheme persists throughout
the entire text. Each of the bunny’s adventures could have occurred using a different pair of
colors, however Portis’ design choice demonstrates the value of Molly Bang’s principle that “we
associate the same or similar colors much more strongly than we associate the same or similar
shapes” (Bang, 2000, p. 76). The chosen colors also invoke a subconscious evaluation of the
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bunny’s character, as red indicates energy, determination and passion and yellow indicates joy,
intellect, and happiness. On the pages upon which the bunny’s imagination is illustrated, the
bright red lines exert dominance over the black lines of the bunny and the box, bringing the
imagined image to the forefront. The value of these color choices remains the same throughout
the book as well. In class we discussed that successful images have a range of tonal contrast,
however I believe that this lack of contrast in value coincides with the significance of the lack of
color variation. The consistency in color and value implies that each of the bunny’s imagined
destinations is possible using just the mind and materials present.
The perspective used in Not a Box is another element that remains consistent and fairly
predictable throughout. The little bunny is fairly large on the page, but small enough that until
the drawings of his imagination fill the page he looks a bit lost and isolated with his simple box.
The point of view of Not a Box is closely associated with Portis’ use of space. The little bunny is
typically placed in the center of the page, therefore being the center of attention. However, when
the page is turned, the bunny’s imagination runs off of the page in almost every instance,
showing that the little bunny’s adventures are grander than his “picture-world” will allow (Bang,
2000, p. 66). This reminds me of Horning’s description of Millions of Cats, in which she
discusses Wanda Gag’s use of negative space to show the passing of time (Horning, 2010, p. 85).
In Not a Box, Portis uses the vast amount of white space to emphasize the extent of the
possibilities the little bunny’s imagination has to fill this physical space and beyond.
The composition of Not a Box contributes significantly to the effectiveness of the
patterned language and pacing of the text. Throughout the book the text appears on the left page
and the image of the little bunny (either with his box or in his imagination) appears on the right
page. This continues until the end of the story, when the bunny allows his not-a-box to fully take
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over and dispel the somewhat scolding tone of the questioning adult both in multiple panels of
images from his imagination or, finally, in a double-page spread and a final page of his
imagination taking off through space. There is a bit of variety in the composition, as the bunny
always begins in a new position in or on his box when he is once again asked what he is up to.
However, unity is achieved throughout by the consistency of the bunny’s placement near the
center of the page. Unity for the entire story as a whole is also achieved through the story’s
“packaging.” The story really begins as soon as you open the book, seeing the bunny dragging
his box toward the true “first page.” The front and back covers of the book even look and feel
like the little bunny’s cardboard box, complete with net weight and “this side up” markings.
Portis’ choice to depict the book as a box illustrates the book as a bit of a constraint just as the
box is depicted in the story, but with the help of the little bunny the reader can find that there is
imagination and excitement hidden within.
Although it is probably obvious from my analysis of the design of Not a Box, I must say I
really enjoyed reading this book. I think that the subject matter is something to which all
children could relate, and even as an adult I am reminded of my childhood when I read this book.
I feel that the aesthetic elements of this book suit the text and the subject perfectly, and I
appreciate the basic quality of the drawings and stylistic elements.
I like that this book invites young readers to imagine and play. The little bunny in this
book is shown to be quite independent and he demonstrates that playing alone can be
comfortable and fun, which is a concept that I think many children struggle with. Most
importantly I believe that Not a Box conveys the idea that even if someone does not have much
to work with there is still potential for fun and excitement. I think that, for children, our culture
is one of batteries and televisions, and that the art of playing through imagination is slowly being
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lost. I used to teach children’s ballet classes, and over time I found that the children’s favorite
activity at the end of class was to “dance” the way certain animals would dance. I would ask
them to dance like they were cats, birds, turtles, rabbits, and so on, and the children had a great
time letting their imaginations show through motion. However, I was always saddened by the
fact that there would be a child or two that seemed embarrassed, even at age 5, to be publicly
displaying the contents of their imagination. I think that Not a Box counteracts this notion and
inspires children to shamelessly use their imaginations to their advantage, encouraging them to
enjoy even the smallest or most basic activities.
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Bibliography
Bang, M. (2000). Picture this: How pictures work. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.
Gann, L. (2012). The art of picture books: Choice of media [Powerpoint slides]. Retrieved
from UNCG Blackboard website: https://blackboard.uncg.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-2278018dt-content-rid-5438813_2/xid-5438813_2
---. (2012). The art of picture books: Elements of design [Powerpoint slides]. Retrieved from
UNCG Blackboard website: https://blackboard.uncg.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-2278017dt-content-rid-5450965_2/xid-5450965_2
Horning, K.T. (2010). From cover to cover: Evaluating and reviewing children’s books (revised
ed.). New York: HarperCollins.
Portis, A. (2006). Not a Box. New York: HarperCollins.