Hello, Sailor, by Ingrid Godon with words by Andre Sollie, was originally published in the Netherlands before being translated into English and published by MacMillan Children’s Books in 2003.

It is a beautiful story about a man named Matt who lives in a lighthouse and works nightly to guide ships safely home with the hope that the sailor he loves and longs for will be on one of the ships.

The whimsical drawings have a folkish charm that captures the mood beautifully. At first, it seems like this will be a story of doomed gay love as Matt waits day after day, night after night, absorbed in the task of helping his love land safely at the shore. However, Sailor does come back for Matt, and he whisks him away.

It’s a lovely, age-appropriate romantic tale to share with young children.

This review is part of my “Snapshots of LGBTQ Kid Lit” project. I’m working on a book, The Transformative Potential of LGBTQ+ Children’s Picture Books, which is forthcoming with the University Press of Mississippi. Part of my research is identifying and interpreting English-language children’s picture books with LGBTQ+ content published in the US and Canada between 1979 and 2019. Follow my blog to follow my journey!