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IN THE WOODS

AN ADVENTURE FOR YOUR SENSES

It’s nice to see a family enjoying the great outdoors and each other.

A family takes a trip to the woods, learning lessons along the way about how to care for the natural world.

Three children and their parent check the weather and plan an outing for the following day. They look at a map of their destination and then lay out what they’ll need to take. Wearing helmets, they bike to the park. As they explore, one child draws, one collects treasures, and the smallest tot sticks close to the parent. A ranger stops one child and a newfound friend from climbing and harming a tree, and in another scene, the parent provides minor first aid to a child with an injured knee. After the family members wave goodbye to their new buddies and take a selfie, it’s time to bike home. The extensive backmatter offers information on seasonal changes, guidance on using all five senses to appreciate nature, and recommendations for getting outdoors.  TolosaSisteré’s pages are full of bright colors, though readers may sometimes have trouble parsing the busy illustrations. The depictions of people are stylized, with long arms, large heads, and strangely shaped noses. The park-goers are diverse, and the featured family has brown skin and black hair, a demographic that’s often left out in books about getting out in nature.

It’s nice to see a family enjoying the great outdoors and each other. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2023

ISBN: 9781771476058

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Owlkids Books

Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

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PAPA DOESN'T DO ANYTHING!

A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.

In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.

Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.

A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: May 13, 2025

ISBN: 9781250393975

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025

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