Spring Books for Primary Readers

(1) K-3 Translated by Michael Blaskowsky. Sato is a little boy in a rabbit costume, a kind of Japanese second cousin to Max in his wolf suit. In a set of seven small vignettes that span the seasons, Sato's daily activities--watering the garden, doing the laundry, splashing in puddles--turn into magic. Cracking open a walnut reveals an inviting miniature world. Eating a watermelon turns into a seafaring adventure. ("Nothing compares to eating watermelon on the sea.") Observing a meteor shower leads to a star-collection mission. Paintings in a naive style burst with saturated color--watermelon red, night-sky blue, spring chartreuse. All the events coalesce in the final section, in which Sato goes on a winter forest walk, collecting ice in many colors. "The events of spring, summer, and fall are frozen into the waters that flowed through the forest." As he puts the various pieces of ice into drinks, he relives his travels, and the reader revisits the colors that enlivened each event. For fans of Doi's Chirri & Chirra books (Underground, rev. 9/19; In the Tall Grass, rev. 11/17; and others), this import provides another cozy glimpse into mystery, independence, and imaginative play.

Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2021

(2) PS It is the end of winter. With a running start, Duck attempts to take flight but crashes and injures himself. This racket wakes Bear from hibernation; Bear gently carries Duck to his den and feeds him. As Duck heals, the two spend time together, Bear admiring Duck's stories of life out in the world. When Duck is able to fly again, he leaves, promising to return. Bear mourns his friend's absence, saying to himself, "I guess that's life, as they say when sad things happen." The next year, after Bear wakes from a long winter's sleep, a happy reunion occurs: "Get up, old Bear!" says Duck. 'I'm back!" This French import is an intergenerational story, albeit a furry and feathery kind: Bear describes himself as "far too old," and Duck has the vim and vigor of a youngster. The text is filled with sensory delights ("The first buds were bursting, and from the last patches of snow, the violets' perfume filled the air") as well as moments of humor ("Come any closer and I'll break your head!" Duck threatens Bear when they first meet). The wood engravings that adorn each page are intricate and deliciously textured. The colors both brighten and soften as spring comes and the friendship between Bear and Duck deepens; this subtle shift in palette heightens the book's emotional impact. An affectionate story of an unexpected friendship.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020

(2) 1-3 A first-day-of-spring picnic by the pond begins a special friendship reminiscent of many classic pairs in the beginning reader canon. In three short chapters, Pig and Goose get to know each other better. While the chosen vocabulary consciously supports newer readers, the text remains smooth and expressive. Comfortable line-and-watercolor illustrations capture both the season and the spirit of the story.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2017

(2) PS Sharing yet another example of the intricacies of animal home construction (see Nesting, rev. 3/20), Cole introduces readers to the masters of the trade: beavers. A practiced storyteller, Cole employs an engaging refrain ("Building, building. That is what beavers do best") to emphasize this theme as he constructs a year in the life of one beaver family. During the last days of winter in a bleak wood--breathtakingly illustrated with fine ink lines, crosshatching, and a faint sky-blue wash--a male and female search for a place to build their lodge. They select a stream with ample willow and maple trees, and, busy as, well, beavers, they begin cutting the trees, sizing the limbs, lugging them into the water, and creating a dam. Readers see time pass, first as wisps of green leaves announce spring; but soon, as a pond forms, this spot of color spreads to the surrounding grass and trees. The beavers construct a lodge, snug enough for three newborn kits and sturdy enough to withstand a strong storm. As the year progresses, they continue building and repairing. A few rust-colored leaves appear; the beavers prepare for winter, retreating to their sheltered snow-covered home. Neighboring wildlife departs, all color disappears, and a hush settles over the now-barren land, bringing this wondrous account full circle. Appended with a brief author's note.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(2) K-3 As a little boy sits on the side of a pool eating an ice-cream cone, his older sister informs him that he had better enjoy it, because "summer's going to end soon." Listening to her ominous warnings ("the days get shorter, there's a chill in the air, and the trees lose all their leaves") and hyperbolic predictions ("everything will be SO dull, and you'll be SO cold [and] you'll be stuck on the sofa for days") causes the boy's imagination to go to extremes, and he begins looking for signs of fall with a heavy heart. One by one, the signs come, but the new season isn't at all what he'd envisioned. Shorter days and changing leaves bring walks with his dad among autumnal colored trees. Time "stuck on the sofa" is enjoyed tucked in between his parents for movie night. And the cold rain his sister threatened soon turns to snow, bringing the unbridled thrill of downhill sledding. Ciraolo's pencil and watercolor illustrations are rich with dynamic facial expressions, dramatically colored imaginings, and energetic lines, all of which communicate the boy's wide spectrum of emotions as he dreads, discovers, and finally delights in each new season. A crocus poking up through the snow on the final spread symbolizes the inevitability of change and the happiness that can be found all throughout the year.

Reviewer: Emmie Stuart | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(3) PS Four goslings and their parents await the hatching of the final egg in the nest. Upbeat rhyming text describes the life around their springtime pond and encourages the unhatched baby until it emerges and the whole family goes for a swim. The close-up, hyper-detailed illustrations offer realistic views of a variety of animals in the pond ecosystem.

Reviewer: Janet Dawson

(3) PS Illustrated by Mary Lundquist. Told from the perspective of a mother watching her young daughter grow, this cheery, lyrical seasonal picture book documents what occurs in their lives from when they plant bulbs in autumn to when the flowers bloom in spring. Delicate illustrations marking important events in the girl's life--such as Halloween, a lost tooth, a broken arm, and a birthday--keep the story child-focused.

Reviewer: Bridget McCaffrey

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Megan Elizabeth Baratta. Dunlap begins her illustrated biography with a question posed by Thoreau in a school report, his earliest known writing: "Why do the seasons change?" She anchors the book solidly in primary-source material, following Thoreau's copious recorded observations of nature, including his classic work Walden, crafting an insightful and vivid portrait for readers. Baratta's delicately detailed illustrations, which appear to be rendered in watercolor and ink, feature the birds, butterflies, trees, and other parts of nature Thoreau talked about in his journals and letters; each specimen is carefully labeled with its common and/or scientific name (such as "birdsfoot violet / Viola pedata"). A timeline runs across the bottom of many pages, marking days of the year as the book moves through the seasons with specific notes Thoreau made on a particular day: "June 5, Woodpecker nest in apple tree." Dunlap discusses the importance of her subject's work in a modern-day study of climate change, encouraging readers to become citizen scientists and record what they see, too. The biography reflects not just Thoreau's interest in natural history but also his political stances (he and his family were passionate abolitionists), his interest in scientific thought (he read On the Origin of Species with keen interest), and his relationships with other notable contemporaries, including Ralph Waldo Emerson and Louisa May Alcott. An excellent introduction to Thoreau and the turbulent times in which he lived.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2022

(3) PS Illustrated by Maria Mola. A little girl plays with her stuffed animals, dolls, and pets throughout the year. All sport weather-appropriate clothing as they engage in seasonal activities (e.g., in el verano, Maya wears gafas de sol and her traje de baño at the swimming pool). The fluid rhyming text sprinkled with Spanish vocabulary is engaging and easily deciphered through context and visual clues in the bright illustrations.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(3) PS Photographs by Rick Lieder. Frost's spare poem invites readers to "come out and explore / New life is exploding / outside your door!" The close observation of nature encouraged by the poet is complemented by Lieder's color photos of tree swallow eggs, a speckled fawn, newly hatched swans, etc., all infused with light and fine detail. Words and imagery together sing of spring's renewal. A pictorial guide gives factual information.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) K-3 Filled with colorful photographs of people, plants, animals, and landscapes in a lively format, this book combines very simple and somewhat sophisticated information about the arrival of spring. The brief text mainly focuses on the science of spring but occasionally strays to present more superficial information on seasonal cultural traditions. Craft and activity ideas are appended.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(2) PS Illustrated by Barbara Chotiner. A seed grows into a dandelion and becomes a ball of seeds that scatter. In a book that relies on typographical creativity to relate information, text placement mimics what's happening in the story. On the opening spread, for instance, "a million silver raindrops... / falling, falling, falling... / hitting the sidewalk with a splash" takes the form of an active rainstorm. On the subsequent spread, the text about the post-storm rainbow is set in an arc shape, each line a different color. A sprout pops up in the city sidewalk, revealing the buttery-yellow petals of a dandelion. Soon, it's "a feathery / white ball of / seeds," which then sail on the wind and land far away in a green field. One dandelion survives to spread its seeds again. The book's playful visual imagery, which also includes various font colors, makes for an engaging read; the text not only forms concrete shapes but also conveys movement (the title's "moving words") and successfully communicates the scientific elements of the story (e.g., lines of text shaped like roots in the soil). Back matter provides more facts about these "tough" flowers and their life cycle.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2022

(1) K-3 In a gentle story of patience, young mouse Penny (Penny and Her Marble, et al.) has a new sled, but it seems as if "it would never snow." Eventually, Penny uses her imagination and turns the sled into a bridge, a house, and more. In a Henkes-esque twist, it never does snow; Penny's waiting is rewarded with a different type of snow in spring. Colorful illustrations sing with emotion and movement, extending the simple beginning reader text.

Reviewer: Emmie Stuart | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(3) PS Illustrated by Laura Dronzek. A picture-book ode to spring blooms again in a new board-book edition. The gently rhythmic text and lush, vibrant paintings in springtime hues capture the season's sights, sounds, and surprises--all of which will draw in a toddler audience. Repetition and alliteration help make the text well suited to reading aloud. Dronzek's bold compositions aren't diminished by the smaller trim size.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2016

(2) K-3 A young girl's "If I were a tree..." conjecture opens the door for an informative and imaginative journey through the seasons of arboreal life. Upon being summoned inside for the evening, Beatrice indignantly reflects that if she were a tree she could "stay outside all night long." The page-turn slowly metamorphoses her arm into a branch, with leaves now in her hair, and her narrative journey begins: "Darkness fell. Stars sparkled. Beatrice swayed in the breeze." Hesselberth's watercolor, acrylic paint, gouache, and digital collage illustrations use texture, geometric shapes, and muted colors to depict a tree's many appearances throughout the cyclical year. One effective spread shows an underground cutaway view of the various creatures that make their homes amongst the roots. Beatrice's indignation upon being snapped out of her meditative state by a second summons--"Beatrice! Bed! Now!"--will resonate with children. Diagrams of photosynthesis and the life cycle of a tree and a list of animals that rely on trees for survival provide further information on the final spread. The endpapers feature various types of leaves, labeled. A fantastical view of trees and their place in nature.

Reviewer: Emmie Stuart | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) PS Isadora's (I Hear a Pickle, rev. 1/16) characteristic ink and watercolor art uses vignettes set against white backgrounds to show children joyfully experiencing the changing seasons. At the start of each section (and season) a young girl looks up at a tree. As the year unfolds and the seasons change, so too do the tree and the girl's clothing. Brief text and coordinating illustrations highlight the distinct natural elements and activities that each season brings (at least in northern climes). Statements about the seasons ("In summer, bees buzz"; "Fall is for hayrides, pumpkins, and trick-or-treating") are interspersed with children's first-person narrations ("We skate on the ice. / We breathe the frosty air"). The final page completes the cyclical journey, bringing readers back to the beginning by answering the title's question: "In spring I wore a raincoat. / In summer it was too hot for a coat. / In fall we wore sweaters. / In winter I HAD to wear a coat!"

Reviewer: Emmie Stuart | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2020

(3) PS It's spring--time for a little bird to chirp, which will attract feathered friends (or so he thinks). Unfortunately, he can't remember "the song of spring," so he sings "Woof," which attracts a dog, who encourages him to try again ("Oink"), which attracts a pig, and so on. This celebration of unlikely friendships features ebullient art in Mother Nature's palette.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(1) PS Storytelling Math series. In board book form, Lin accomplishes that most difficult of tasks: creating engaging, accessible, age-level-­appropriate, not-too-fussily illustrated stories that also teach something. In this case it's math. Each entry homes in on a specific mathematical concept, while together providing a tour through the seasons--and a slice-of-life portrait of three friends, Olivia, Mei, and Manny. In the springtime-set Knees, Mei observes measurement and comparison as she cultivates a sunflower. Circle! Sphere! proves the mind-stretching fact that the children's three different-shaped bubble wands produce the same-shaped bubble. Fit’s setting is a fall farmers' market and illustrates Olivia's spatial sense (and taste in ­produce). Wintry Marshmallow touches on division, both ­mathematical (how to split three marshmallows between two girls...) and behavioral (...without ruining the friendship). The illustrations are signature Lin--think The Ugly Vegetables (rev. 9/99) and the Ling and Ting books--with bold, saturated hues; thick black outlines; judicious use of frames; eye-pleasingly tidy details; and nothing extraneous. Brief "Exploring the Math" notes and "Try This!" suggestions, addressed to adults and written by an early math expert, are appended. All together, these diminutive math storybooks add up to a whole lot of fun.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020

(3) PS Illustrated by Christa Pierce. Two cats plan, dig, plant, and nurture a garden. The spare, upbeat text ends with the cats sharing the harvest with their animal friends. Observant readers will enjoy spotting a worm with a tiny hat in several of the light-filled watercolor and digitally enhanced illustrations. The friendly animals and bright, cheery colors emphasize the mood promised in the title.

Reviewer: Gail Hedges

(2) PS Translated by Alan Corbiere. Illustrated by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley. A child and their grownup experience the seasons together in this bilingual (Anishinaabemowin and English) picture book. The text follows a question-and-answer pattern. Each query rests on a double-page spread with loads of white space and a visual clue signaling the response to come. In the first spread, for example, a zoomed-in image of three blueberries rests on the verso page, while the following text appears on the recto: "Aaniish ezhi-gkendmaanh niibing? / How do I know summer is here?" The responses to each question include visceral, sensory-rich descriptions of how each season is experienced through the characters' observations and absorption into the natural world ("Pii pinion gaa-giizhiwaabidegin mgising / gzhaawngideg gewe negwiki." / "When blueberries drop readily, / and the sand is hot enough to sting"). Throughout, the gray-haired character is shown taking care of the child by preparing food, mending footwear, and more. The digital art, with its jewel tones and thick black outlines, at times resembles stained glass. Other spreads feature shadows and gradients beautifully depicting the aurora borealis, sunsets over water, and calming rays of winter sunshine streaming through a bedroom window. A warmhearted depiction of the seasons and intergenerational closeness.

Reviewer: Elisa Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(2) PS Illustrated by Sujean Rim. Shades of icy blue suffuse the first double-page spread, with four kids all bundled up against a chilly, snowy day: "Here's a message for school bus riders heading out on a cold, dark morning." That message also goes for birds on the next spread and then, on subsequent pages, for kids wrestling with winter gear, dogs in coats, and crossing guards: "Do not lose heart!" After these encouraging words, a page-turn shows the Earth and sun (from space), with deep-blue hues punctuated with smiley yellow stars and a reminder that the days are growing longer until "the day becomes exactly as long as the night." Then glorious springtime, with daffodils, daisies, and butterflies and a light-blue sky appearing: "On this day we say Happy Springtime!" The rest of the book bids happy spring to a variety of people and creatures: "...to groggy frogs waking up from their winter's sleep...wielders of watering cans...bees burrowing in blossoms," and many more. McMullan's rhythm and word choices are enthusiastically joyful, a perfect pairing with Rim's watercolor, pencil, crayon, and collage illustrations. The children shown throughout have a variety of hair colors and skin tones, and once spring has hit, their postures and expressions become celebratory. After our pandemic year, the arrival of springtime may be particularly welcome to children who have been cooped up for a long time--but this picture book will be welcome all year round and next year, too.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2021

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Melissa Crowton. Feeling homesick after moving "more than an ocean away" to America, Millie suggests to her class that they build a garden on the school's roof. After gathering supplies, planting seeds, and lots of waiting ("good things take time," their teacher tells them), the children's efforts are rewarded with the first sprouts' appearance. Then the garden takes off, and everyone harvests vegetables and celebrates their success. When Millie takes her first bite of carrot, "it tastes like home." The calm mixed-media illustrations, which feature a diverse and determined group of students tending to the garden, enhance this uplifting story about finding belonging and purpose somewhere new.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Kerns

(3) PS Illustrated by David Walker. In their seventh outing (Bears in the Snow etc.), the four colorful little bears and Big Brown Bear prepare a picnic to enjoy under flowering trees. When "the wind's just right," the little cubs abandon their honey bread to fly kites, then go for an unexpected ride along. The bears' pastel colors match the springtime setting in Walker's acrylic illustrations, which nicely complement Parenteau's sweet rhyming story.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter

(2) PS Join four turtles, two large and two small, on a slow walk through the seasons of the year. Soft, smudgy lines and rounded shapes in washes of joyful color create scenes worth meandering through. The chanting text keeps a gentle rhythm throughout and invites participation: "Turtle walk. Nice and slow. // Here we go. // Are we there yet? // No." Each season has its most celebrated attributes on display in the art, from birds, bunnies, and daffodils in spring to the brighter summer sun and the rich colors and harvest of autumn. Spot art and single-page illustrations show the turtles taking it all in as they walk. Each season breaks as the turtles cuddle up together for a good night's sleep, and the next season launches with the page-turn and a new day. The final season, winter, comes with a bit of an uphill struggle but also a surprise adventure from the top of the snowy hill, before the turtles head into their cave for their long winter's rest. "Zzzzzzzz." Paired with the inviting visuals, the predictable text has just the right mix of pace and repetition to capture the attention of the very youngest listeners enjoying their own slow and wondrous walks through life's first seasons.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2021

(1) PS With her latest science-focused picture book, Portis (Hey, Water!, rev. 3/19) continues to introduce very young readers and listeners to the wonders of nature. Here she details the life cycle of a sunflower in ten sequential steps. Each left-hand page features a single phrase ("a seed falls" / "and settles in the soil"), with the ­facing page showing a bright, uncluttered ­illustration mirroring the action. The story's climax--the blossoming of a flower--is shown in a gorgeous vertical spread that lifts up to announce this glorious event. The patterned text creates an internal rhythm pleasant to hear, while the single phrases on each line help emergent readers focus on both the flow and meaning of the words. Key words (seed, soil, sun, rain) are color coded to the accompanying illustration, thus reinforcing the use of context clues. The narrative concludes with birds dispersing the seeds from our flower and beginning the process anew. Back matter consists of a pictorial life cycle of the sunflower, truncating the steps from the text to present a helpful visual capture of the book's information. An accompanying diagram of the parts of a sunflower may require adult guidance, as may two charts: one showing the parts of a seed and the other listing what seeds need to sprout. A bibliography completes the book. Clear, engaging, beautiful, and perfectly pitched to its young audience--simply brilliant.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Shahrzad Maydani. Young poetry-lover Sylvia writes a poem about spring and ties it to a birch tree. The next day in its place is a poem that Sylvia believes the tree wrote to her. When a school bully shows up at the park, the two discover that they've been writing to each other. Graphite-pencil and watercolor illustrations balance white space with pastel colors and provide subtle foreshadowing in this gentle tale.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(3) K-3 Well-known photographer Rotner captures the elements of spring in her typical big, bright, and beautiful color photographs. The focus is on nature, from plants and flowers to bugs and animals. A variety of children are shown enjoying the outdoors, as the text clearly explains--and joyfully celebrates--the changes that spring brings. Glos.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Mercè López. Divided into four sections by season, these "riddle-ku" poems use innovative language to represent something traditionally associated with each one. (For back-to-school in fall, for example: what is "a yellow train / carrying thoughts from your brain / to the waiting page?" A pencil.) In addition to helping readers solve the puzzles, the supporting acrylic and digital illustrations capture movement and texture through strong lines and seasonal hues.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Micha Archer. This whimsical celebration of springtime features a playful equation poem on every page. Equations are paired with a few sentences that are always informative and often lyrical: "Lilac blooms are spring's perfume." Tracing the season's changes from early to mid to late spring, Archer's collage illustrations are rich with texture and detail. This picture-book blend of math, science, and poetry welcomes--and explains--the hallmarks of spring with effortless ebullience.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(3) K-3 It's spring, and everything is fresh and growing: "Seeds sprout. / Stems pop out." Each set of short rhyming couplets, on facing pages, precedes the refrain--"Bloom, boom!"--on the following double-page spread. Clear, vibrant photography and a large trim size brings spring's flowers to life. Includes notes on the featured flora. Websites.

Reviewer: Meredith Madyda

(2) PS Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Waiting for spring can wear on one's patience, but readers may find comfort sharing the burden with Ethan and his (apparently single-parent) father, who go through their daily routines looking forward to warmer days, shorter nights, and running sap in their maple trees. Still, Ethan has quite a wait yet, and as time passes, the illustrations show the stark contrasts of dark skies and long shadows with indoor lights and white snow. And, week after week, Ethan faces Sunday breakfast sans maple syrup, while the nights remain long and the days cold. A loose tooth provides a break in the monotony but ultimately creates yet another thing to wait for. Through muted colors with pops of red and well-considered details, artfully placed illustrations ranging from spot art to double-page spreads capture the relentlessness of winter, the budding of spring, and the easy comfort of this father-and-son relationship. Crisp text supplies just the right pace for the story and clearly explains the sugaring process without disrupting the flow of the narrative. The subtle visual cues that the season is slowly changing become more evident with every page-turn until the sweet and satisfying conclusion.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2020

(2) PS Illustrated by Taeeun Yoo. Soft mixed-media illustrations depict a young girl and a puppy, first observing innately round entities in nature, such as seeds and oranges, then noticing roundness over several seasons--from blueberries in the spring to the moon and stars in winter's night sky. In the end, the girl creates her own kind of round by curling up into a cozy ball. A thought-provoking and lyrical ode to nature.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2017

(2) K-3 Nowruz is a celebration of the end of winter and the start of a new year. For the three boys and their fathers in this story, a visit to what appears to be an ­Iranian bathhouse is an essential part of the preparations: "Everyone wants to be clean for the new year." While the fathers soak in large pools and snack on ­watermelon and other treats, the boys are distracted by loud noises, ripped towels, and broken pumice stones on the floor. Their imaginations run wild, and they suspect that a Div, a monster "with big horns! And big, dirty feet!" may be in residence. A menacing shadow, to everyone’s relief, seemingly reveals itself to be a harmless cat. The notion that a monster could be in the bathhouse seems preposterous, but there are plenty of hints in the lively digital illustrations to suggest that perhaps there really is one. In this delightful story, everyone, from kids to cats to monsters, celebrates the new year. An author's note provides further information on Nowruz and its traditions.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2022

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Frané Lessac. An extended family engages with activities and traditions that express gratitude and carry on Cherokee history and culture. Simultaneously, the book incorporates modernity and challenges dated images of Indigenous people. Cheerful, richly detailed gouache illustrations in bright, saturated colors cycle through the seasons. The text includes several Cherokee words (their English and Cherokee spellings, phonetic pronunciation, and definition); a complete Cherokee syllabary concludes this attractive and informative book. Glos.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2018

(2) K-3 In four stories, one for each season, we follow the adventures of Little Witch Hazel, a sturdy, rosy-cheeked forest dweller with a bevy of woodland friends--gnomes, fairies, trolls, owls, mice, frogs, and newts. The tales recall classic nursery stories (a rescued animal who later repays the kindness; a parade of creatures that gets longer and longer as everyone joins in a quest) and as such have just the right amount of tension for the audience. (What could be making the eerie noises coming from the hollow tree? Will Hazel become lost in a blizzard?) Apart from a pointed hat, there is nothing particularly witchy about Hazel. Rather, she seems to be a kind of community-health carer, seeing to an abandoned owl's egg, a chipmunk with a toothache, a postpartum rabbit mother. Wahl's (The Blue House, rev. 7/20) digital art, in deep earth tones, has the retro look of wood-block prints and contains plenty of details to pore over. An endpaper map of the whole of Mosswood Forest serves to remind readers of the journey just taken and the pleasures of this tight-knit neighborhood in miniature.

Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Jen Hill. In the middle of winter, Sophie is ready for spring. Her mother tells her to listen for it. Eventually, she hears the first chirps, but it's still cold and snowy. So her parents tell her to use her other senses to follow spring's progress. The book advances nicely through the change in seasons; gouache spreads of the landscape alternate with more action-filled vignettes.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2017

(1) K-3 When six-year-old Marvel, seven siblings, and their newly widowed mother are forced to move into an abandoned tar-paper shack in the woods, it "doesn't seem like much of a home." As the seasons pass, however, Marvel and her family discover the simple treasures their new life offers. Based on Wheeler's grandmother's childhood during the Great Depression, this tender tribute avoids sentimentality in favor of honest, child-centered observations. Wheeler's precise figure-drawing style captures the situation's difficulties.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(1) PS Illustrated by Felicita Sala. Do we need another picture book about the seasons? When it's this good, the answer is an emphatic yes. White's text is written in eminently readable verse that employs repetition, spot-on cadence, slant rhymes grounded in assonance, and inventive word choices. Early lines about summertime are representative: "Lemonade petals. / Sunflakes between. / Lemonade, sunflakes, and yellow on green." Meanwhile, Sala's art provides all narrative content, interpreting the poetic text with lush illustrations that follow a family--a child and two parents (all dark-skinned and blue-eyed)--through the seasons in their rural coastal community. One marker of the passage of time is the mother's growing belly. Another is Sala's shifting palette to visually depict the changing seasons: green dominates early scenes set in spring; then summertime blue skies and ocean waters take hold; followed by warm autumnal golds and browns; then snowy winter whites. (Endpapers feature portraits of the same tree in four different seasons.) Green returns again in closing pages, which also introduce a new baby into the family. Cozy and calming, familiar and fresh, Green on Green is great.

Reviewer: Megan Dowd Lambert | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2020

(2) PS Yelchin's whimsical wordless tale begins with a red-haired girl and a curious rabbit enjoying a trampoline. One big bounce sends them into the sky. A series of progressively fanciful scenes unfolds in the air before they eventually land back on the trampoline. Panoramic spreads, along with a range of textures and a vibrant color palette, result in an immersive and buoyant bounce of an adventure.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2017