Finding grateful

When a red car breaks down and its passengers, a mother and child, start walking home, the child points anxiously toward the raised hood and the smoke, and the mother responds with a smile. She sees life as a search for gratitude, a conviction that grounds this tale by White (Dark on Light): "Mama says:/ you don't need a map/ to find grateful." As the two walk through city streets, the child spots a flower growing in a sidewalk crack. "Mama says:/ be where your feet are/ that means/ pay attention." In mixed-media spreads by Pray (One Day), passersby are more than just background figures; they offer tangible warmth and presence to the child's landscape. Pleasure in sensory perceptions--the scent of honeysuckle, toes freed from sandals, a hug after a fall--unite in the child's final realization: "Maybe it is all of this/ that makes my heart as light as/ the sun... and then?/ I find it--/ grateful!" Implicit in both artwork and text is the deep trust mother and child share, and the way that trust opens the younger to mindfulness. Characters are portrayed with various abilities and skin tones. Ages 5--8. Author's agent: Jennifer Rofé, Andrea Brown Literary. Illustrator's agent: Molly O'Neill, Root Literary. (Apr.)

In a busy city, a mother and child go on a meditative journey. The title spread depicts the two protagonists, both beige-skinned and brown-haired, looking distressed as their car emits smoke. Soon, the two leave the broken-down vehicle, and Mama, undaunted, leads her apprehensive child on an impromptu adventure through the city. Worry is replaced by curiosity as the child narrates their experience. "Mama says: / you don't need a map / to find grateful," the little one tells us. "Grateful means / noticing / this thing / that thing / anything, really"--bending down to touch bright yellow flowers poking out from the gray sidewalk, smiling and waving to a friendly stranger, enjoying the cool spray of a sprinkler, chasing a boisterous puppy…even taking a tumble that causes sore knees and some tears. Comforted by Mama, the resilient little one continues to explore and then reflects on the simple moments of the day. Perhaps the young narrator has found "grateful" after all. White's spare, lilting prose evokes the playfulness of this unexpected day with age-appropriate whimsy, using language such as "I tiptoe-lean" and "I stand tree-still." Pray complements the text with soft, curved lines, a delicate pastel palette of pinks, blues, and greens, and varying perspectives that pinpoint tiny luminous details amid a bustling environment. This one's just right for social-emotional storytimes. A pitch-perfect introduction to gratitude, reflection, and the art of noticing. (Picture book. 2-5) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.