Wherever You Go

K-Gr 2--The road rises up to meet a bicycle-riding rabbit throughout this travelogue written by the author of Sophie's Squash (Random, 2013). Unless there are a lot of big vehicles, visual subplots, or a compelling narrative arc, the metaphorical use of roads easily becomes too abstract for young children--and cliched. Miller employs singsong verses throughout, preceded by the word roads, an ellipsis, and a verb, e.g., "Roads...zoom./Beneath city buildings that tower on high, /twinkling like stars/in the dark velvet sky/Racing past signs./Reflecting their light./Zigging and zagging./Turn left. Then turn right." These constructions prove confusing, as it isn't clear whether it's the buildings or the roads that are "twinkling" and "racing." The rabbit and an owl interact with an assortment of anthropomorphized creatures as the road bends, merges, remembers, and ultimately returns home. Wheeler's watercolor and gouache scenes are defined with delicate ink lines. Pink and peach are the predominant colors of the sky, sea, trees and landscape. This palette and the settings--a paddle boat turned restaurant, a turreted tree house, a walled city hosting a carnival--create an exotic atmosphere. The characters, however, are tourists without a tale. Perhaps it works best as a candidate for a graduation present. --Wendy Lukehart, District of Columbia Public Library

This joyful book explores the power of roads to transport, connect, entertain, enlighten, and return adventurers home. Miller's (Sophie's Squash) buoyant rhymes follow a bicycling rabbit along country, seaside, city, and mountain roads. What makes the tacit invitation to ride along irresistible are Wheeler's (The Grudge Keeper) sprawling, bustling landscapes, which encourage readers to imagine stories within the story. Saturated with glowing golden tones, the mixed-media pictures feature fantastical architectural flourishes while highlighting the rabbit's propensity for making friends. After he loads an owl onto his bike, they climb aboard a VW bus jammed with animal passengers to continue their tour, enjoying what each stop has to offer (a tea party in a tree house, a hike up a mountain) and each other's company. Miller's gentle urging to chart new courses ("If you yearn for the ocean or wish for a stream, / roads bring you closer to reaching your dream") gives this lovely offering appeal both as an inspirational gift book and as a bedtime tale. Ages 3-6. Author's agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Erin Murphy Literary Agency. Illustrator's agent: Jennifer Rofe, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (Apr.)