Dear Treefrog by Joyce Sidman (review)

In this poetic picture book, a girl moves into a new house and discovers a tree frog in the yard; observing the frog and listening to nature soothes and focuses her (“I look/ and breathe/ and/ settle/ growing/ calmer/ steadier/ a little less lonely”). Local kids aren’t a great fit as friends in summer, but fall and school bring a kindred spirit, and soon the girl and her buddy are playing in the snow as the tree frog waits the season out, and then in spring they greet the frog’s reemergence together. Sidman displays her usual gift for careful, vividly turned free verse (“a tiny dollop of/ frog/ where before/ there was only leaf”), with additional prose details adding further froggy particulars on many spreads; the message that nature can help emotionally as well as informationally is well conveyed. Sudyka’s gouache scenes are lush and verdant, depicting the teeming richness of life in an ordinary backyard; subtle captions and closeups are included to round out the picture of the ecosystem and frog life. Any location with tree frogs will find this a winner, and it could also entice youngsters out to explore what’s living quietly alongside them in their own neighborhoods. End matter provides more info about tree frogs.