Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"Under autumn leaves,/ a boy is watching a/ beaver build its lodge." A branch breaks free, and Miniver and Vess trace its journey as it weathers a winter in the river ("the branch sleeps in its cold bed--/ a black arrow aimed at the sea") and makes its way to the ocean in spring, only to wash up where "a boy walks along the shore,/ looking for beach-things." The branch, driftwood now, has become a summer treasure--"hard and smooth and beautiful,/ like the inside of a seashell." Dragged through the sand, then carried home by the brown-skinned boy as a souvenir, the branch ends its travels, its return to the boy's world gently evoking the cyclical cadence of nature. The hazy texture and precise detail of Vess's colored pencil and ink illustrations, which utilize panels to underline the bough's movements, pair beautifully with Minever's dreamy, poetic prose. An author's note explains the ecological importance of driftwood. Ages 4--7. (Oct.)
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Review by Horn Book Review
Emphasizing natures cyclical patterns, this picture book opens and closes under autumn leaves where, sitting high in a tree, a boy watches a beaver build its dam. When a branch breaks away, the river rushes it down / down / down until it is blocked by a boulder. There it remains, frozen in its cold bed for the winter. Spring returns, the river thaws, and the branch continues its journey, eventually floating out to sea, where it serves as an oasis for seabirds and a perch for gulls and cormorants. After a brief stint on a fishing boat, the branch drifts closer and closer to the shore, finally landing on the beach, where it is found by the same boy. But its no longer just a branch: weathering the long journey and elements has turned it into hard and smooth and beautiful driftwood. For the boy, its treasure. A pen for writing in the sand, a pirates sword, a sandcastle wall, and, upon the return of autumn, a reminder of the driftwood days of summer. Rendered in soft colored pencil and ink, the illustrations hum with a gentle energy matching the texts rhythmic and lyrical cadence. Double-page spreads and panels work together, highlighting the movement of the branch through the river, amidst the vastness of the sea, washed up on the shore. The authors note, explaining the importance of driftwood in the ecology of rivers, oceans, and beaches, is like the story itselfsimple, informative, and heartfelt. Emmie Stuart January/February 2020 p.74(c) Copyright 2020. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Readers follow a branch as it bobs down a river and out to sea, where it transforms into driftwood.The story begins "under autumn leaves": A brown-skinned boy watches a beaver constructing its lodge in the river. A branch breaks loose from the structure and is carried down river until it snags on a boulder, where it stays all winter as the river freezes. When spring returns and the river thaws, the branch moves on, making a stop at the river's edge, where turtles climb on it. When the branch floats out to sea, weary birds use it as a resting place. When the waves finally carry it to shore, "the summer sun bleaches its dark hues" until the same boy, vacationing with his family on the shore and "looking for beach-things," finds it and picks it up. For the boy, it is everything: a pen, a sword, a souvenir. At summer's end, the boy and his family return home to the mountains, where, once again, he watches a beaver constructing its lodge. Vess' drawings, done in colored pencil and ink, are soft and detailed, with elements of line and motion that draw the eye all over the page. The background holds interesting changes throughout: families of different species and signs of new seasons, various habitats. The text educates stealthily, never sacrificing the soothing, poetic, and cyclical story, which has the makings of a classic. An author's note discusses the importance of driftwood to the ecosystem.Content and style, structure and illustrations combine to make this a beautiful and satisfying story. (Picture book. 3-9) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
