06/01/2024
PreS-Gr 2—When a person is feeling overwhelmed, looking around and noticing patterns can be a calming action. Part math concept book, part coping technique, this gorgeously illustrated picture book shows a young child out and about with an adult in very busy places. The text points out a variety of patterns—light and dark, color, size, even patterns that can be created while moving. Some of the patterns are fairly obvious and others will need more careful analysis. The patterns are shown in a variety of settings: in a store, at home, with trees, in the ocean, in the stars. The conclusion reminds readers that searching for patterns can help make sense of a world that can be big and confusing. The back matter also includes a page describing different kinds of patterns, both mathematical and natural, as well as activities. The artwork is warm and beautifully rendered in compelling ways, using mixed media, three-dimensional sets; these were photographed and give the work an organic, even tactile, sense. Young readers will enjoy poring over the pages, searching for patterns and details with every rereading. VERDICT This beautiful book will be an excellent addition to both SEL shelves for coping strategies or STEM shelves for the math.—Debbie Tanner
2024-01-20
In this companion to Listen (2021), illustrated by Stephanie Graegin, Snyder encourages children to develop perceptive looking and pattern-seeking as coping tools for the frequent visual overwhelm of daily life.
A pregnant parent and a child—both ginger-haired and white-presenting—navigate a busy autumn day, with stops at a garden, a farmers market, a pond, and a wooded trail. The child carries a sketchbook gifted by the parent, making drawings of patterns spied in textiles, butterfly wings, and the starry night sky. Throughout, the text directly addresses readers, pointing out patterns, encouraging them to find others, and suggesting physical activities that add kinesthetic possibilities for pattern-finding. Snyder identifies the striped pattern made by a kitchen chair’s cast shadow—“Light, dark, light, dark”—then asks, as the pair leave the house, “Where else can you discover stripes?” Cotterill’s hand-built mixed-media constructions, replete with 2-D painted inserts of diverse people, flora, and fauna, embody the visual cacophony of Snyder’s text. A lively farmers market scene contains visual depth, colorful details, and plenty of discoverable patterns. The walk home leads the parent and child through woods teeming with mushrooms, bright leaves, and wildlife. The occasional blurring of the photographed backgrounds is a bit jarring, evoking more a camera’s eye than a child’s visual experiences.
A warm invitation for children to find mastery and calm in looking. (glossary, pattern activities) (Picture book. 4-7)
