I Really Want to See You, Grandma

Japanese author-illustrator Gomi (Bus Stops) imagines a transportation mix-up in which two journeys intersect in fun and serendipitous ways. Yumi lives on a hilltop, and Grandma lives across town, on a mountaintop. Impulsively, they both set out to visit each other on the same day. Yumi%E2%80%99s bus drives over the bridge just as Grandma%E2%80%99s train travels underneath it. Arriving at their destinations, they immediately discover their crossed paths. %E2%80%9COh, no!%E2%80%9D Yumi cries. But they meet, eventually, in the middle. The book%E2%80%99s short, wide trim size contributes plenty of space for the landscapes to unfold, and Gomi%E2%80%99s saturated colors have jewel-like tones; the richly textured watercolor washes in simple shapes have the soft look of fabric. There%E2%80%99s gentle comedy in the big, obvious gestures of the neighbors who help explain the situation to Yumi and Grandma, and the different forms of transportation add interest. Unspoken, but also gratifying, is the idea of a place in which a small child can set out alone to see her Grandma in perfect safety. Ages 3%E2%80%935. (Apr.)