Wave
Starred Review. Kindergarten-Grade 3—Lee's wordless picture book perfectly captures a child's day at the beach. Followed by a flock of seagulls, a girl runs delightedly to where waves break on the shore. She surveys the sea and together they begin a silent dance. She chases it as it recedes, runs from it as it surges, splashes in it when it calms, taunts it as it rises, and finally succumbs to it crashing down upon her and discovers what treasures the waves can bring. A panoramic trim size beautifully supports the expansiveness of the beach, and Lee uses the gutter to effectively represent the end of the shoreline—until the girl crosses that line. Loosely rendered charcoal and acrylic images curl and flow like water and reflect playfulness, especially in the facial and bodily expressions of the child and seagulls. The use of blue in an otherwise gray-toned world calls attention to the ocean, which rivals the girl as a main character in this story.Waveis best shared in small groups for the younger set, but also suited for solitary enjoyment by older children. A simple, well-crafted story of friendship.—Kim T. Ha, Elkridge Branch Library, MDCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.