Clothes and My Day: Rilla Alexander

Touch Words are pretty much that: words raised for the touch. Also raised are elements within the illustrations of Clothes and My Day. These hefty board books invite touch, not with varying textures, but with carefully aligned die-cuts and raised portions.

My Day includes words: make, draw, play, bake, and more. While Clothes features words such as undies, dress, coat, and shoes. Accompanying each word are nouns one might find in the featured item or activity, with adjectives and verbs closing the lists. An example:

GO
roller skates * wheels * blocks * tricycle * pull toy
speedy * rolling * skating * pulling * pushing * running
rolling * pedaling * steering * tugging

wagon

This is streamlined nonfiction with flat, hard-edged, digital imagery. Various ages will engage in different ways with Touch Words.

Touch Words
Clothes
My Day
by Rilla Alexander
Handprint Book,  2019

More, more, more: The Hike

What a breath of fresh air The Hike is! Thanks to Chronicle Books for believing a "quiet" picture book can still hold a place on today's shelves. Alison Farrell's work does so beautifully.

Wren, El, and Hattie are off with their pup Bean to enjoy a hike through nature. Illustrations identify the variety of foliage and fauna they pass along the way. Armed with pencils, poems, and feathers, the three enjoy map-reading, sketching, and basket-making. Reaching the top of the hill, they celebrate before returning home.

I love everything about this work: from the text, to the font, to the layout, to the careful illustrations sharing the beauty all around us. Inspire a walk in nature with this picture book. There's so much to see!

The Hike
by Alison Farrell
Chronicle Books, 2019