On a Mushroom Day

In this introduction to the joys of mushrooming, debut author Baker uses direct address to take readers into the forest, whose floor “springs a little under your footsteps.” Rich multimedia spreads in sylvan greens and browns by Finkelday (When the Storks Came Home) show two sets of booted feet, transporting readers to uneven ground as a child and caregiver search, smell, and learn. Mushrooms are the fruit of a fungus, the visible part of underground webs “of finest thread called mycelium” that connect “the trees, feeding the forest and binding us all together.” The adult helps the child down from a log as they explore, while illustrations picture each mushroom variety with the objects they’re named for: a tiny lion on a lion’s mane mushroom, an elf drinking from an elf’s cup. Infused with respect for mushrooms and the woods where they grow—“Take your time, and give your attention”—the account supplies as vivid a sense of the work of hunting as it does in describing the discoveries. Back matter offers additional information and useful warnings about identifying mushrooms. Human characters are represented with brown skin. Ages 3–7. Agent (for author and illustrator): Adriann Ranta Zurhellen, Folio Literary. (July)