The Box Full of Wonders

K-Gr 1–Two adults with their own children leave separate dwellings to form a blended household. A map depicting an “old home” and “new people’s old apartment” with a “new home” in the middle does little to steer young readers towards an understanding that this is a story of blended families. A protagonist with brown skin finds an empty cardboard box, which he imagines is a boat, a rocket, a tractor, and more. Looking on from the side is a pair of white children playing with their own cardboard box. Readers are not told who these children are; they are rendered in gray scale, while the protagonist is shown in full color. It quickly becomes clear that this child is angry about moving and wants to escape the new living arrangement, but no mention is made of the other children, which readers may view as siblings. In a rage, the child ­verbally assaults the other children’s box, which leads to consequences. As this child laments the loss, the two others, now in full color, offer to share their box, at which point all the children play together, and everyone begins to get along. Without the plot description on the back cover of the book, it’s impossible to understand the ­premise.