Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 09/15/2021 A blue-haired child enthusiastically gives readers the answer to the question at hand in this charming blend of fiction and nonfiction. It’s easy to skip or drop rocks, but to have fun, the narrator suggests, you’ll need to find more. And once you have a pile of rocks, you can sort them (however you want!), study them, make art with them, or keep them in a collection. Loosely drawn illustrations with an abundance of rocks in varying sizes, colors, and shapes bestow charm as they invite readers to pause and admire the rocks alongside the narrator. Perhaps the best way to enjoy rocks, however, is to share them. The picture book’s final scenes depict the child discovering rocks in a seaside setting and finding a new friend in the process. Together, they share their rocks and build stories about them. A concluding section describes the three main types of rocks and offers more suggestions on organizing and interacting with rocks, while endpapers sport beautiful rock examples. A lovely, unconventional tribute to rocks and their admirers. - Copyright 2021 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 11/01/2021 PreS-Gr 2—What a rocking picture book this is! With a bit of geology, a bit of psychology, and a lot of fun, the author and illustrator give us a small active person of indeterminate gender and neutral pronouns in the text (and longish flippy blue hair in the illustrations), who delightedly progresses from kicking rocks, to picking them up, to skipping, dropping, sorting, studying, creating with them—and finally, using them as a stepping stone to friendship. Harking back to such gems as A Hole Is to Dig, this book in its final pages provides a quick intro to geology and some further reading, with both fiction and nonfiction suggestions. In the animated, realistic, blue-washed watercolors, perspectives vary and figures are anchored by thick, fuzzy lines. Landscapes and interiors are uncluttered, but detailed enough to convince. Many compositions featuring a path with an entry- or exit-point help to reinforce the reader-oriented viewpoint. The clear, simple, second-person text offers encouragement and elides gender, but eventually the main character and brown-skinned friend with hair in two meatball-shaped buns are wearing what most children will perceive as girls' bathing suits. VERDICT A winning blend of science, playfulness, and the warmth of personal connections, with lively, engaging illustrations, this book deserves rock-star status—Patricia D. Lothrop, formerly at St. George's Sch., Newport, RI - Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.