Review by Booklist Review
A boy and his little sister venture out into their island town to "see / the sea before the storm"--but before the text even begins, illustrator Smith, wizard that he is, has already conjured the story's stirring emotions through an interior title page heavy with a longing sense of nostalgia and a dedication page filled by darkening gray-blue skies, tilted trees, a fluttering laundry line, and a woman chasing down some garments blown free. As the storm approaches, the siblings watch growing waves crash into the shore; they pass boarded-up homes and various landmarks of their eerily empty town. Between each section of the homey island tour, they pause to consider retreat--but press forward with the refrain "You pull on me, I pull on you, and we decide to go on." When thunder booms, though, they run. The blotted watercolor and gouache art takes on a diagonal blur as rain torrents muddle every spread, until they finally reach the safety of home and their mother's arms. Floca's poetic text carries all the quiet suspense and crashing weight of an approaching gale, colored by enough loving detail of setting that it finds something powerfully universal in the specific. An oddly moving ode to childhood, home, and sibling bonds, set to the awesome bass line of nature.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The wind blows hard, and two children--one taller, one smaller--pull on their boots. "Now take my hand," one says, "and we'll go see/ the sea before the storm." Caldecott Medalist Floca, here taking the role of author, employs atmospheric verse to describe the children's unaccompanied escapade: "We see the waves coming,/ pushed from the sea/ to SMASH/ on the rocks." A neighbor out for a walk suggests that the kids head home, but the two nudge each other forward, returning to a refrain: "And then we ask, is this enough, or do we try for more?" Choosing to go on, they find the streets in town deserted, eerie, gleaming. Hans Christian Andersen Award recipient Smith captures the burgeoning storm's splendid energy in broad strokes and splashes as the sky suddenly opens up and the children dash for home, braving sheets of rain and tree-bending winds, until they're met by an adult with a flashlight running toward them: "Home to relief, and to love./ Home to trouble, too!/ Home to forgiveness." The next morning, the children clamber across rocks on the now-clear shore, an adult nearby: "the view across the water is long.// And you and I go on." It's a thrilling story about how a shared exploit can deepen camaraderie and trust--and a dynamic look at the dual powers of nature and volition unleashed. Characters are portrayed with pink skin. Ages 4--8. Illustrator's agent: Emily van Beek, Folio Jr./Folio Literary. (July)
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Review by Horn Book Review
Caldecott winner Floca and Hans Christian Andersen Award winner Smith team up to create a magnificent, timeless tale of two young children on an adventure close to home. An intense storm is approaching. "Now take my hand / and we'll go see / the sea before the storm," begins Floca's rhythmic and expressive text. The children bundle up and head to the cove, where they witness the waves smashing and exploding on the shore and ask themselves, "Is this enough, or do we try for more?" The intrepid explorers continue, in what becomes the text's refrain: "You pull on me, I pull on you, and we decide to go on." They walk through town, "eerie and empty." A "BOOM" and pelting rain send them running through cold, dark woods for home. "Home! / Home to relief, and to love." The storm passes during the night, and the next day dawns. "Now the day is bright and blue, / and the view across the water is long. / And you and I go on." Floca's writing is pure poetry; Smith's expressionistic watercolor and gouache illustrations are utterly gorgeous; and themes of adventure and home, sibling closeness, and the majesty of nature are expertly conveyed. Picture-book making at its best. Dean SchneiderJuly/August 2025 p.69 (c) Copyright 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
Caldecott Medalist Floca and Hans Christian Andersen Award--winning illustrator Smith tell the story of two youngsters braving a gale. While their parent collects laundry that has flown off the line, the children--presumably siblings--walk away. "Now take my hand / and we'll go see / the sea before the storm." At first that seems the beginning and ending of their adventure as they stand on worn stones watching the waves "SMASH on the rocks and EXPLODE into spray." Then something compels the kids to continue. "You pull on me, I pull on you, and we decide to go on," the author repeats in what feels like a chant. Only too late do the siblings realize that they've gone too far; they race for home through the rapidly approaching dark and rain, toward light and warmth and their relieved parent. Smith's impressionistic watercolor and gouache illustrations convey not simply the horrifying strength of the storm, but also the way the light of day changes and shifts throughout the kids' walk. The images plunge readers into heart-stopping moments, rendered real thanks to Floca's incredibly evocative wordplay, capable of eliciting both fear and comfort. Readers will experience this tempest alongside the characters, every step of the way. Yet the true heart and soul of the book resides in the siblings' relationship as they weather the weather--and more--together. The characters are light-skinned. The power of nature captivates and compels in this phenomenal tale of pushing limits.(Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
