Puddle Song — Laura Purdie Salas

★ 03/01/2023PreS-Gr 3—Bring me your boots, you stompers and jumpers./ Bring me your leaves, you wind-rattled trees. Who is narrating this divine glimpse of children, who are variously Asian, brown, and white, riotously clomping, skipping, and whirling through a rainy day? The puddle, of course. In atmosphere and dress, the watercolorlike illustrations strike an old-fashioned tone but adhere to the puddle's perspective, offering surprising close-ups of a doggy's curious face and leaves floating past. A solid ode to childhood's passion of viewing a silky surface and destroying it. VERDICT A first purchase; joyful, economical, and exhilarating.