A Walk in the Forest

February 13, 2017
In her first children’s book, Polish artist Dek paints and writes about exploring the wild, and one wild place in particular: “In the forest, wonders await.” Simple, childlike watercolors show a boy standing in a wide-open space at the edge of a stand of trees. They’re painted separately and carefully: slender conifers alternate with leafy-crowned deciduous specimens. A page turn, and viewers find themselves amidst the trees. Great trunks reach high; birds sail back and forth. The text is spare: “It’s the best playground ever.” Small vignettes show the boy looking at a group of objects he’s gathered, dragging a stick as he walks, running to catch a dragonfly. Dek pays attention to the forms and texture of the things that grow in the forest, and to the chance discoveries it can provide, as when readers spot just the back of a deer (“Look!”). Treasures—a pinecone, a rock, a butterfly wing—are laid out as a collection. Dek’s invitation to explore the forest’s magic and to leave behind civilization, vehicles, technology—even other people—feels honest and strikingly personal. Her story itself is a journey. Ages 3–6.

Starred review from February 15, 2017
A pale-skinned child crosses a blank, white page into a screen of trees, where "wonders await." Readers entering this book's varied landscape encounter similarly wondrous pictures and words. They stand in the child's shoes, enveloped by forest under a lush canopy of green leaves, looking skyward at brilliant birds darting from limb to limb. Verdant watercolor illustrations describe both the density and individuality of the myriad botanicals entwined in woods: fronds, leaves, branches, twigs, stems, grasses, and blossoms. Gentle imperative urgings pull readers into a lush, wooded embrace ("Run wild in the jungle!"; "Follow footprints. / See where they lead you"). Dek's evocative woodland pictures, earnest phrases, and unhurried pacing evoke the quiet pauses and exhilarating discoveries experienced during a walk in the forest. Inventive compositional choices and surprising, shifting perspectives keep readers alert, expectant, and fully engaged. They look from above in all-encompassing aerial illustrations; they burble underwater, examine nests, seeds, blossoms, and wild strawberries, gaze eye to eye with a fox, and survey upper branches from a bough. Deer and birds come and go across the page. Vines creep. Footprints meander. A breathless quiet falls on wordless spreads, conjuring that feeling of clearheadedness offered by nature. A startling, successful evocation of the natural world and an urgent entreaty for young people to immerse themselves in the outdoors. (Picture book. 4-8)

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