Outside Your Window

PreS-Gr 3—A handsome, oversize collection of original poems paired with vibrant illustrations in mixed media ranging from watercolor to collage. Broken down into seasons, the selections encourage children to observe the world around them and appreciate nature in lyrical ways. Davies describes spring bulbs "counting out the days like a calendar" so that they know winter is almost gone and summer flowers that "shout to insects with their colors." In autumn, fungi appear like "rubbery Frisbees on trunks of trees" and in winter, swarms of starlings fly together "making waves and arcs and spirals in the sunset sky." The seasons flow with the sweep and swoosh of Hearld's colorful, impressionistic artwork. Along with her joyful poetry, Davies includes directions for making a tasty "berry crumble," hints on "saving seeds" for future cultivation, and making suet "seed cakes" for winter birds. In no way a field guide (originally published in Great Britain, some of the wildlife is strictly European), this is a celebration of the world around us.—Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY