Ivy Van Allsberg impatiently waits for spring as she experiences the chilling dark days of winter as depicted in the blacks, whites, browns and grays of stunning linoleum block print illustrations. Then the snow begins to melt, puddles form and the sun begins to shine. Though Ivy doesn’t notice at first, spring slowly emerges as gradual color appears in her world. Ivy’s days of April and May then bloom with color as she dances with daffodils and plays outdoors.

Vanita Oelschlager and Kristin Blackwood have created one of the most memorable visual explorations of great poets and writers for children. Through Oelschlager’s inventive writing technique, the initial narrative passage introduces Ivy and then the remainder of the story is told through the selected verse from poets and writers such as Dickinson, Whittier, Whitman and Milne. Detailed renderings of their timeless works can then be found in the back of the book.

Children, parents, teachers and librarians will enjoy this fresh approach as the change of seasons introduces great poets and writers. Recommended for all children’s collections and for all little ones who find it hard to wait patiently on winter days so they can once again jump, skip and run under sunny spring skies!

Carolyn S. Brodie, PhD
Professor
Kent State University
School of Library and Information Science