Picture Book Friday

 

“Once we were part of outside and Outside was part of us.” so begins Outside In by Deborah Underwood, with illustrations by Cindy Derby.

 

This lovely story offers readers a thoughtful contemplation of nature’s gifts. Outside In is an invitation to slow down and remember the many ways in which nature provides for us even when we’re too busy to notice.

 There’s a sweetly melancholy tone as the story begins in a time and place where we were a part of nature and nature was an intimate part of our daily lives shown by a child running in the woods.  Then comes an acknowledgement of how that relationship has changed. Now, even though the child is outside, she’s in a car racing through a landscape that is unacknowledged.

 But nature’s not going to be ignored—there are reminders all around us—the flash of lightning through a window. There’s the magic of a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. We hear it in the song of birds and the rattle of rain on the roof. We smell it in the sun-warmed earth and blossoming flowers. We taste it in the food born of sun and rain. Nature waits…and…if we are wise, we answer.

Underwood’s lyrical language conveys the natural world in a style perfectly suited to young readers. Simple vocabulary and short sentences that sometimes stretch across the double-page spreads make this a book that emerging readers can access.  And parents will enjoy reading this more than once to children eager to revisit this stunning work.

Derby’s illustrations create a sense of beauty, mystery, and enchantment that beguile the eye and are a wonderful complement to the text.

 I can imagine Outside In finding a home in classrooms, libraries, and homeschool collections. It’s a wonderful introduction to a nature walk, a discussion of the many ways nature intersects with our lives, or a conversation starter.

Highly recommended for home and school.