Oliver, a little piece of a big puzzle, wonders how he will fit into the big picture of his life and whether or not he will be part of a unicorn's mane, a pirate squid tentacle, an astronaut's helmet or something else, in a metaphorical tale about finding the place where one belongs. By the creator of Maxwell the Monkey Barber. - (Baker & Taylor)

As a little puzzle piece, Oliver wonders where he fits in and hopes that it is somewhere exciting, but he tries too hard to fit in places where he doesn't belong. - (Baker & Taylor)

Oliver has always dreamed about where he will fit. Will he be in the mane of a unicorn? The tentacle of a pirate squid? The helmet of an astronaut? When he finally goes in search of his perfect place, he finds that trying to fit in is a lot harder than he thought. But like any puzzle, a little trial and error leads to a solution, and Oliver figures out exactly where he belongs.

Where Oliver Fits is a sweet and funny story that explores all the highs and lows of learning to be yourself and shows that fitting in isn't always the best fit. - (Random House, Inc.)

CALE ATKINSON is an illustrator, writer and animator. He is the author and illustrator of To the Sea, Explorers of the Wild and Maxwell the Monkey Barber, and the illustrator of If I Had a Gryphon and The Day Santa Stopped Believing in Harold. His work can be found in children's books, animated shorts, television and games. Cale lives with his family in Kelowna, BC. - (Random House, Inc.)

Horn Book Guide Reviews

Jigsaw-puzzle piece Oliver doesn't fit in. He tries to change to fit in with others, but "no one had a clue it was really him." When he decides to be himself, he finally sees where he belongs. This message-first story--enhanced by lively illustrations that bring the familiar concept to life--may lead to conversations about peer pressure and self-acceptance as well as differences. Copyright 2018 Horn Book Guide Reviews.

Kirkus Reviews

Oliver searches for his proper place. "Do you ever wonder where you fit?" Puzzle piece Oliver, with a large round head that's half blue and half orange, wants to be part of something exciting, wild, out of this world. But where? On his first puzzle he tries, he's the wrong color; on the second, the wrong shape. Oliver decides that being himself is getting him nowhere; he colors himself red to fit in. This works, until his shape gets him ejected. He tries different appendages to change his nature, all to no avail. Desperate, Oliver decides to go to extremes. He changes himself, with tape and staples and a purple crayon, till he's unrecognizable. He fits snugly into a purple puzzle. Everything is perfect, but it doesn't feel that way to Oliver. He's pretending he's someone else. "What fun is it to fit in?" When he takes off his disguise, he's immediately rejected and alone again. Still, Oliver's glad to feel like himself again. He looks around and sees other pieces that, like h im, have tried glue and tape and other bits to fit in. Maybe they'll all fit together. They do, in a genre-mashing picture that's exciting, wild, and out of this world. Atkinson's message on being true to yourself is valuable, but his puzzle-piece metaphor has its limitations when applied to individuality. His Photoshop artwork bursts with color and ingenuity, however. A good-hearted, if somewhat confusing, meditation. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus 2017 Kirkus/BPI Communications. All rights reserved.

Publishers Weekly Reviews

Playing with the idea of finding one's place, Atkinson (Explorers of the Wild) introduces a puzzle piece named Oliver who is searching for where he belongs. Ideally, he'd be "part of something exciting" (Atkinson shows a puzzle of a pirate squid cackling over his treasure chest), "wild" (a green monster plays electric guitar in another puzzle), or "out of this world" (an astronaut unicorn sails through space). For his part, Oliver is a small, blue and orange puzzle piece, with eager eyes and a big, round head. Through a mix of dialogue and lightly punny narration, Atkinson follows Oliver's misguided efforts to force himself into various puzzles, creating obvious parallels to the way humans mold themselves to fit different social circles (though perhaps not using markers and tape, as Oliver does). Some of Oliver's realizations are overly earnest—"If I can't be me, then what fun is it to fit in?"—but the message is valuable, and the closing revelation that the seemingly disparate puzzles are part of a single giant one is a unexpectedly touching reminder that, whether space unicorn or monster musician, we're all in this together. Ages 3–7. (Sept.)