Big new titles perfect for the littles.
These are scary times, and we all need to be gentle with ourselves right now. This month’s stories aren’t sweeping epics. Rather, they’re sweet, simple picture books to bring preschoolers and younger school-age kids (and the grownups who care for them) a bit of calming comfort.
Welcome to Your World by Smriti Prasadam-Halls (Candlewick Press). A tiny human is introduced to the creatures and natural beauty all around: “Welcome, little baby, round your mama curled. Welcome, little baby. Welcome to your world.” Wonderful illustrations by Jaime Kim add lushness to a tale that ends with an important question: “Welcome to your world — it loves you through and through. Welcome to your world…will you love it, too?”
What Matters Most by Emma Dodd (Templar Books). A mother horse leads her fuzzy foal around the barnyard and pasture in search of the things that really count. No matter what, she reminds the youngster, “Whether you are scared or brave, or if you’re big or small…in the end it’s always love that matters most of all.” (Good luck reading that passage aloud without choking up.)
Hike by Pete Oswald (Candlewick Press). No words here, just page after page of muted, charming illustrations of a father and son heading out of the city toward a grand, daylong adventure in the mountains. They return home to cookies, pajamas, and snapshots from their special day together.
This Is a Dog by Ross Collins (Nosy Crow). What happens when a feisty pup grabs the author’s black crayon and takes off running? He’s suddenly in charge of writing the animal book and chasing — or being chased by — the giraffe, elephant, gorilla, bear, crocodile, and other critters featured in it, that’s what!
