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The Shapes Trilogy #1
Triángulo / Triangle
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Picture Books (2017)Part of the Shapes Trilogy, the books that inspired Shape Island from Apple TV+
Multi-award-winning, New York Times best-selling duo Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen conspire again on a slyly funny tale about some very sneaky shapes.
Meet Triangle. He is going to play a sneaky trick on his friend, Square. Or so Triangle thinks. . . . With this first tale in a new trilogy, partners in crime Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen will have readers wondering just who they can trust in a richly imagined world of shapes. Visually stunning and full of wry humor, here is a perfectly paced treat that could come only from the minds of two of today’s most irreverent — and talented — picture book creators.
Multi-award-winning, New York Times best-selling duo Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen conspire again on a slyly funny tale about some very sneaky shapes.
Meet Triangle. He is going to play a sneaky trick on his friend, Square. Or so Triangle thinks. . . . With this first tale in a new trilogy, partners in crime Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen will have readers wondering just who they can trust in a richly imagined world of shapes. Visually stunning and full of wry humor, here is a perfectly paced treat that could come only from the minds of two of today’s most irreverent — and talented — picture book creators.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published March 28, 2017
82 people are currently reading
4076 people want to read
About the author
Mac Barnett
105 books1,306 followersBorn to non-farmers in a California farming community, Mac Barnett now lives near San Francisco. He's on the board of directors of 826LA, a nonprofit writing center for students in Los Angeles, and he founded the Echo Park Time Travel Mart, a convenience store for time travelers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 846 reviews
April 2, 2017
I shared Triangle with a group of boys at the Maryland State Juvenile Detention Center yesterday. The group we are currently working with are juveniles who will be tried as adults, and this was our first session with these guys.
Many of the kids at this facility have spent time in the foster system. Most read well below grade level. Some have developmental issues. 100% of the boys in this group are black, although that is not the case throughout the facility. During this grant-funded program, we'll be working through three novels in which characters are affected by social structures that box them in, limit their options, or force their actions. Heavy stuff.
So at the end of this first session, I busted out Triangle. I got great responses about "what can you tell about Triangle just by looking at him?" I earned respect by calling him 'kind of a dick.' And as Square chased Triangle back to his house, one boy knew what was going to happen. "He won't be able to get in! Because he's square!" And then when Square got stuck, we speculated about why he couldn't just turn sideways.
Then I asked "Why would Triangle build a door that his neighbor can't get through?" Laying the groundwork for talking about the structures that don't let them through and the intent behind those structures. This may not have been exactly what Mac and Jon were going for in this terrific picture book, but it sure does work.
Many of the kids at this facility have spent time in the foster system. Most read well below grade level. Some have developmental issues. 100% of the boys in this group are black, although that is not the case throughout the facility. During this grant-funded program, we'll be working through three novels in which characters are affected by social structures that box them in, limit their options, or force their actions. Heavy stuff.
So at the end of this first session, I busted out Triangle. I got great responses about "what can you tell about Triangle just by looking at him?" I earned respect by calling him 'kind of a dick.' And as Square chased Triangle back to his house, one boy knew what was going to happen. "He won't be able to get in! Because he's square!" And then when Square got stuck, we speculated about why he couldn't just turn sideways.
Then I asked "Why would Triangle build a door that his neighbor can't get through?" Laying the groundwork for talking about the structures that don't let them through and the intent behind those structures. This may not have been exactly what Mac and Jon were going for in this terrific picture book, but it sure does work.
August 15, 2017
Triangle by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen was a disappointment for me. This is Barnett and Klassen we’re talking about!!! What could go wrong?
Whenever these two talented and original authors hang out on the pages of a picture book, fun and quirkiness for kids of all ages hits whole new levels. But not this time. Not for me. I read it again. And again. And again. Hoping it was just my mood the first 3 or 4 times. Nope. The story felt flat and mean spirited to me. I could not find the Klassen/Barnett charm in Triangle’s “hiss” joke on Square at all. How is scaring Square with one of his biggest fears funny? I usually see humor and personality in the eyes of the characters, but I only saw revenge and fear this time out. Maybe I had my hopes way up because I adore these two artists together. *shrugs*
This is probably a classic case of “this is just not for me”, but I cannot recommend this book. Take a peek at it at your local Library before buying it for sure.
Read Barnett & Klassen’s Sam and Dave Dig a Hole to see their distinctive brand of magic in action. That book is not to be missed!
December 22, 2019
Each year my family reads all the Goodreads picture books and we have been doing this for years. Everyone rates each book and adds a comment and it may (or may not) affect my overall rating. This is book #1, 2017.
Tara: 4 stars. Cute art.
Harry (12): 3 stars: I like how the author asks us if square actually played a trick on triangle.
Hank (11): 3 stars. Nice. I like the unpredictable little "trick" at the end.
Lyra (10): 3.5 stars. I like the pictures and how square got his revenge on triangle.
My review from 10/15/17:
5 stars. I am forever a Mac Barnett and Jon Klaasen completist, having read Dave Digs a Hole and other books they've done together, books that are for kids, but don't insult their intelligence, don't put kids into a narrow box about what they can and can't read/understand/deal with.
In this one, for younger kids, and which has a simple board cover, making it look like a toddler book (sneaky!), Triangle plays a sneaky (or is it mean?) trick on Square, who does not like snakes. (Hiss!) Square plays one right back on him, knowing Triangle is afraid of the dark. Gives kids a chance to discuss with adult readers the act of playing tricks on each other, and also the concept of intentions (the end raises some question about whether Square really intended to have played a trick on Triangle, or whether he might have intended something else).
Oh, and it teaches small kids about shapes! And differences. And how to (not) get along with others.
Paula's great review
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
about teaching this book in a juvenile detention facility, so awesome.
Tara: 4 stars. Cute art.
Harry (12): 3 stars: I like how the author asks us if square actually played a trick on triangle.
Hank (11): 3 stars. Nice. I like the unpredictable little "trick" at the end.
Lyra (10): 3.5 stars. I like the pictures and how square got his revenge on triangle.
My review from 10/15/17:
5 stars. I am forever a Mac Barnett and Jon Klaasen completist, having read Dave Digs a Hole and other books they've done together, books that are for kids, but don't insult their intelligence, don't put kids into a narrow box about what they can and can't read/understand/deal with.
In this one, for younger kids, and which has a simple board cover, making it look like a toddler book (sneaky!), Triangle plays a sneaky (or is it mean?) trick on Square, who does not like snakes. (Hiss!) Square plays one right back on him, knowing Triangle is afraid of the dark. Gives kids a chance to discuss with adult readers the act of playing tricks on each other, and also the concept of intentions (the end raises some question about whether Square really intended to have played a trick on Triangle, or whether he might have intended something else).
Oh, and it teaches small kids about shapes! And differences. And how to (not) get along with others.
Paula's great review
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
about teaching this book in a juvenile detention facility, so awesome.
May 11, 2025
3 August 2017
Set amidst a dystopian hellscape of repetition and conformity, Barnett and Klassen's story evokes a quiet terror in the unwary reader. Look into Triangle's mad, staring, eyes and see the sort of dread that comes to us all after thirty-six hours of bad coffee and no sleep.
The prose has been sucked dry of blood, or color, or warmth, or life: there is no trace of anything humane left. The prose is so terse, so spare, Cormac McCarthy is beating out his own despairing brains with the crumbling remains of Hemingway. No one else will ever approach so near to the void, where the only solace is that you have no back to turn on your best friend before he stabs you in it.
Most artists set their haunted houses amidst dark and shadowy sets, where the difficulty of seeing permits the mind to fill in the half-glimpsed with all that is worst in the imagination. Barnett and Klassen have set their nightmare against a stark, white, relentless background: this world is devoid of a single softening shadow, the universe itself is as inescapable and cruel as the ubiquitous eye of Big Brother.
In the end you are left exhausted, with nothing left except Triangle and Square, the two-dimensional shapes of pain.
***
11 May 2023
A conundrum: in this book Square knows what Triangle fears. But in CIrcle, published two years later, Triangle denies having that fear. What is truth, anyway?
Library copy
Set amidst a dystopian hellscape of repetition and conformity, Barnett and Klassen's story evokes a quiet terror in the unwary reader. Look into Triangle's mad, staring, eyes and see the sort of dread that comes to us all after thirty-six hours of bad coffee and no sleep.
The prose has been sucked dry of blood, or color, or warmth, or life: there is no trace of anything humane left. The prose is so terse, so spare, Cormac McCarthy is beating out his own despairing brains with the crumbling remains of Hemingway. No one else will ever approach so near to the void, where the only solace is that you have no back to turn on your best friend before he stabs you in it.
Most artists set their haunted houses amidst dark and shadowy sets, where the difficulty of seeing permits the mind to fill in the half-glimpsed with all that is worst in the imagination. Barnett and Klassen have set their nightmare against a stark, white, relentless background: this world is devoid of a single softening shadow, the universe itself is as inescapable and cruel as the ubiquitous eye of Big Brother.
In the end you are left exhausted, with nothing left except Triangle and Square, the two-dimensional shapes of pain.
***
11 May 2023
A conundrum: in this book Square knows what Triangle fears. But in CIrcle, published two years later, Triangle denies having that fear. What is truth, anyway?
Library copy
March 14, 2017
Triangle lives in a triangle house, with a triangular door, in a neighbourhood full of triangle. One day he decides that he wants to play a sneaky trick on Square. So off he goes to Square’s house. It’s a long walk to his house, past lots of shapes, and non-shapes, until he reach’s Square’s house, with his square door, living in the square neighbourhood.
But who will have the last laugh? Will it be Triangle with his sneaky trick, or will Square get him back?
If you are familiar with, and enjoy the works by Jon Klassen, then you will love this book by Mac Barnett, which has been illustrated by Jon.
This is not your conventional children’s book, with their bright colours that fill the pages. This book has dark illustrations, sometimes with not much going on. They are also drawn on a cream background, rather than white, or a bright colour.
Mac Barnett has written a fun, interesting, yet basic story of a shape, living in a place that is filled with the same shapes, having fun with another shape from another village. There isn’t much more to it, but it is told in a way that grabs your attention, and makes you intrigued.
A fab hardback book that will capture children’s imaginations and keep them amused throughout.
Reviewed by Stacey on www.whisperingstories.com
But who will have the last laugh? Will it be Triangle with his sneaky trick, or will Square get him back?
If you are familiar with, and enjoy the works by Jon Klassen, then you will love this book by Mac Barnett, which has been illustrated by Jon.
This is not your conventional children’s book, with their bright colours that fill the pages. This book has dark illustrations, sometimes with not much going on. They are also drawn on a cream background, rather than white, or a bright colour.
Mac Barnett has written a fun, interesting, yet basic story of a shape, living in a place that is filled with the same shapes, having fun with another shape from another village. There isn’t much more to it, but it is told in a way that grabs your attention, and makes you intrigued.
A fab hardback book that will capture children’s imaginations and keep them amused throughout.
Reviewed by Stacey on www.whisperingstories.com
March 18, 2017
I was disappointed. The characters are not nice and I didn't feel like there was a lesson learned. I did love the illustrations.
March 22, 2017
Shapes are jerks
March 18, 2018
Exceptionally brilliant idea to keep your neighbors away from entering your home. Living in a world where everything is about angles would be tiresome though.
March 15, 2017
Mac Barnett + Jon Klassen = Automatic Pre-order
Verdict: Trilliant setup to what is sure to be a fantastic trilogy!
Verdict: Trilliant setup to what is sure to be a fantastic trilogy!
October 7, 2017
We all try to fit in - but first it is important to ask: what shape will I have to assume to fit into a situation that is new? A very good lesson for children.
September 11, 2019
#1 Triangle ★★★★★
#2 Square ★★★★★
#3 Circle ★★★★★
I technically accidentally read #2 in this series before this one (#1), but it doesn't matter at all. They stand alone just fine and are totally adorable separate from one another or together. Again, these are so fun and the art style is super unique and lovable. I'm gonna have to buy copies of these to keep at home for my son because a library loan wasn't enough.
Also, can we just take a moment to appreciate how hilariously weird Square's shifty-eyes face is? I love it so much.
March 22, 2018
Ja, ik zie in dat dit boek gaat over belangrijke thema's als pesten vs plagen enzo. Maar op een of andere manier deed het niet echt iets voor me. Het liet me eerder met een rare, vervelende nasmaak achter. Nee, niet het soort prentenboek waar ik van houd.
Toch een tweede ster omdat ik de tekenstijl erg mooi vind.
Toch een tweede ster omdat ik de tekenstijl erg mooi vind.
November 18, 2018
Cute book. Even cuter when my son insisted on turning the pages himself and when it was over I got to spend 5 mins wiping off hot cheetos finger prints.
September 7, 2023
Superbly drawn by Jon Klassen. And I'm aware this is for kids... but I am getting a bit bored of the cutesy storylines in these Barnett penned books. Still great little story nonetheless. I love the way Klassen does the expressions with the eyes.
April 2, 2017
This new offering for kids was displayed front and center at Joseph-Beth on our Friday night visit. It's written by Mac Barnett, but the illustration style of Klassen is a very obvious one, and brings this quirky, clever tale to life. Barnett has himself a fun story that will connect with kids, the intended audience, but also have adults smiling at the antics and conclusion.
March 16, 2017
A wonderfully Jon Klassen illustrated book about two friends, a square and a triangle, who play tricks on one another. A series about to unfold.
May 6, 2024
Another absolute triumph of storytelling from Klassen and Barnett. Is Triangle or Square the ultimate pest? Who can say?
March 12, 2017
I got a peek at the book on Mac Barnett's iPad when he came to the Library to do a program (best day of my professional and book reader life ever). It's just so good. Jon Klassen's art is somehow even better than before, with so much depth and texture in the deceptively simple scenery. The colors are neutral, but what could have been boring and dreary in another's hands is instead whimsical, intriguing, adorable.
And the facial expressions of the titular character and his friend/maybe frenemy Square. I was cackling. Real talent right there, making federal employees cackle in public.
As for the story.. what can I say, it's Mac Barnett. It's funny and clever and eyebrow-raising. There is mischief, revenge, friendship, deception, prideful posturing, and adventure. And shape-related mysteries.
I recommend you read it, friends. If you enjoy picture books and delight.
And the facial expressions of the titular character and his friend/maybe frenemy Square. I was cackling. Real talent right there, making federal employees cackle in public.
As for the story.. what can I say, it's Mac Barnett. It's funny and clever and eyebrow-raising. There is mischief, revenge, friendship, deception, prideful posturing, and adventure. And shape-related mysteries.
I recommend you read it, friends. If you enjoy picture books and delight.
May 6, 2017
I wasn't really sure about this odd-duck book. I loved the muted art but Triangle isn't very nice and there isn't really a conclusion but both of my kids liked it and my 5yo asked for it at bedtime again and again. The more I think about it, maybe for my daughter it's nice to have a book where everything isn't always roses (or the conclusion isn't) because that's probably a bit true to life for the school yard. Sometimes kids play mean-spirited tricks and sometimes you retaliate in ways you didn't expect.
April 18, 2017
Ok, am I crazy? The perspective of the illustration of the square "almost" making it through the door is bugging me! Wouldn't you see the whole square outside the triangle door if he couldn't make it through? It looks like he's standing inside. Correct me if I'm wrong! Anyway, this was a cute story, and I love the Klassen eyes and muted colors, but it didn't quite have the the magic Sam and Dave Dig a Hole or Extra Yarn had.
August 12, 2023
کتابهای این رده سنی جالب شدن.
December 20, 2021
《هو الحق》
من اول یک جلد خوندم بعد دیدم خیلی عجیبه گفتم شاید جلد بعدی رو بخونم بهتر بشه ، هر سه جلد رو خوندم و نشد 😂
یک سری از ایدههاشون جالب بود ولی پایان بندی و نتیجهگیریهاش رو دوست نداشتم
۲۹آذر ۱۴۰۰🍁🍂
من اول یک جلد خوندم بعد دیدم خیلی عجیبه گفتم شاید جلد بعدی رو بخونم بهتر بشه ، هر سه جلد رو خوندم و نشد 😂
یک سری از ایدههاشون جالب بود ولی پایان بندی و نتیجهگیریهاش رو دوست نداشتم
۲۹آذر ۱۴۰۰🍁🍂
October 19, 2017
Bleh!!!!
Dark, ugly illustrations--I am NOT a Jon Klassen fan, and he can take that Caldecott Medal and stick it where the sun don't shine--the people on that committee were asshats.
And where Klassen goes, meanness invades. I've liked other Mac Barnett books, but this one seems to have been influenced by I Want My Hat Back. Where are all those moralizing types who want a moral to the story? This is just about 2 "friends" being mean to each other. No resolution, no justice.
And last, but not least, this had a board bound cover that was already scraped and stained when it arrived. Mostly WHITE--just perfect for those tiny tot hands.
Ick, ick, ick. Where is the ZERO STAR rating?
Dark, ugly illustrations--I am NOT a Jon Klassen fan, and he can take that Caldecott Medal and stick it where the sun don't shine--the people on that committee were asshats.
And where Klassen goes, meanness invades. I've liked other Mac Barnett books, but this one seems to have been influenced by I Want My Hat Back. Where are all those moralizing types who want a moral to the story? This is just about 2 "friends" being mean to each other. No resolution, no justice.
And last, but not least, this had a board bound cover that was already scraped and stained when it arrived. Mostly WHITE--just perfect for those tiny tot hands.
Ick, ick, ick. Where is the ZERO STAR rating?
December 25, 2020
This may have my favorite page turn in a picture book ever. Klassen is a first-rate illustrator.
December 7, 2017
A picture book about unreliable narrators. Who is telling the truth in this story about two friends, Triangle and Square, playing sneaky tricks on each other? This might also work as a mentor text for teaching point of view. How would Triangle tell the story? How would Square? How would you?
July 25, 2018
I love mathematics – with a particular interest in Shape and Symmetry. So, how could I resist an illustrated book called “Triangle”. Although I am a little older than the target audience of 3 – 7 year olds, I really enjoyed this book, and especially the illustrations.
The main character is an isosceles (yes, of course I measured the sides) triangle, who lives in a triangular house, in an area filled exclusively with triangles of all sizes (but no scalene or right-angle ones). Being a liberal triangle, he has non-triangular friends, in particular one masquerading as a square (actually a rectangle, but I expect most children will not get out their rulers to check). Triangle wants to play a trick on Square. Actually, quite a nasty trick. He plays on Square’s fear of snakes. Square retaliates by making Triangle scared. Was his retaliation planned – or just a fortunate (?) coincidence?
Not really a great lesson for children – how to terrify your friends by using their greatest fear, and validating revenge (deliberate or not). But, on the plus side – they will learn about shapes, and how you cannot get a square through a triangular hole (unless it goes sideways – something for the next lesson).
The main character is an isosceles (yes, of course I measured the sides) triangle, who lives in a triangular house, in an area filled exclusively with triangles of all sizes (but no scalene or right-angle ones). Being a liberal triangle, he has non-triangular friends, in particular one masquerading as a square (actually a rectangle, but I expect most children will not get out their rulers to check). Triangle wants to play a trick on Square. Actually, quite a nasty trick. He plays on Square’s fear of snakes. Square retaliates by making Triangle scared. Was his retaliation planned – or just a fortunate (?) coincidence?
Not really a great lesson for children – how to terrify your friends by using their greatest fear, and validating revenge (deliberate or not). But, on the plus side – they will learn about shapes, and how you cannot get a square through a triangular hole (unless it goes sideways – something for the next lesson).
January 16, 2019
Triangle sets out to the house of his friend Square in this picture-book, walking past triangle-shaped objects, indeterminately-shaped objects, and then square-shaped objects. Once there, he plays a "sneaky trick" on his friend (pretending to be a snake), before hightailing it for home, Square in hot pursuit. Once back at Triangle's home, Square in turn plays a sneaky trick on his friend. But was it a deliberate act, as he claims, or is he simply stuck in place...?
A quick perusal of the illustrations will answer that question, of course, but Triangle still entertains, with its simple text and its appealing visuals. Using just a few shapes and colors, illustrator Jon Klassen manages to create some lovely vistas and amusing scenes. The artwork here really made the story come alive for me, as the plot-line itself felt a little random, and the text somewhat stilted. This was a surprise, as I usually enjoy author Mac Barnett's books. Recommended to fellow Klassen fans, and to anyone looking for quirky friendship stories with a little bite.
A quick perusal of the illustrations will answer that question, of course, but Triangle still entertains, with its simple text and its appealing visuals. Using just a few shapes and colors, illustrator Jon Klassen manages to create some lovely vistas and amusing scenes. The artwork here really made the story come alive for me, as the plot-line itself felt a little random, and the text somewhat stilted. This was a surprise, as I usually enjoy author Mac Barnett's books. Recommended to fellow Klassen fans, and to anyone looking for quirky friendship stories with a little bite.
August 13, 2020
GPL Storytime Goes Online: Mac Barnett
August 12, 2020
Read at Storytime December 5,2018
Theme: Shapes
Read for Storytime, June 6th 2017
Theme: Favorite Authors: Mac Barnett
I don't know who was laughing more...me, the kids or the parents when we read this for Storytime. I do know that almost all the adults laughed for the simple eye illustrations used by Klassen to convey the emotions of Triangle and Square (my favorite was the side eye glare that Square maintains through the chase). One of the most rewarding moments of my storytime career was to hear the words, "Again! Again!"
Perfect for all ages!
August 12, 2020
Read at Storytime December 5,2018
Theme: Shapes
Read for Storytime, June 6th 2017
Theme: Favorite Authors: Mac Barnett
I don't know who was laughing more...me, the kids or the parents when we read this for Storytime. I do know that almost all the adults laughed for the simple eye illustrations used by Klassen to convey the emotions of Triangle and Square (my favorite was the side eye glare that Square maintains through the chase). One of the most rewarding moments of my storytime career was to hear the words, "Again! Again!"
Perfect for all ages!
August 29, 2020
You can sing the book to "A Horse with No Name." (Almost)
http://pussreboots.com/blog/2017/comm...
http://pussreboots.com/blog/2017/comm...
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July 29, 2017I would only read this to my children if I wanted them to turn out to be Sylvia Plaths. And do I? The saga continues.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 846 reviews