All Around Me I See

by Laya Steinberg, illustrated by Cris Arbo —

This is an exuberant tale of a child’s first nature discoveries — a frog, a deer, a fish, a beetle — celebrated in a realistic fantasy of nature from a child’s point of view.

This is an exuberant tale of a child’s first nature discoveries — a frog, a deer, a fish, a beetle — celebrated in a realistic fantasy of nature from a child’s point of view.

With eyes wide open to the mysteries of nature, a child on a hike with her family discovers wonderful creatures and relates to them with simple analogies to her human experience: A leaf is a boat for a beetle / The grass is a bed for a deer / A hollow is a hideout for a squirrel / A blossom is a bowl for dew.

Tired from her long walk, she sleeps — and in her dreams, she frolics with a deer and soars among flowers and treetops to view nature close-up.

Ages 3 to 8.

$16.95 hardback, $8.95 paper — Dawn Publications, 12402 Bitney Springs Road, Nevada City, CA 95959.

Reprinted from AzNetNews, Volume 24, Number 3, June/July 2005.