The Couch in the Yard

“This is a house in the hills up high,/ with a rusted old car in the sweet joe-pye” begins Hoefler (Courage Hats) in this cumulative rhyming story that’s, per an author’s note, rooted in family drives through Appalachian Ohio. Headed out for their nightly outing, a caregiver and three children, portrayed with various skin tones, get a rusted car in the yard running, tie the couch that also sits in the yard on top, and take off “past the field with the school bus surrounded by sheep,/ and the stormed-down oaks, and the old scrap heap.” A tire blows, but the car “lifts into flight,” traveling alongside others and carrying the family all the way to the moon. There, they snuggle together on the sofa, the beauty of Earth spread out before them. Via grasslike textures and soft illumination, digitally rendered spreads by Seiferling (Night Lunch) create a dreamlike ambiance for this atmospheric look at a family who sees magic and possibility poised in the ordinary: “Cars in the yard don’t ever die—/ they nest like birds and wait to fly.” Creators’ notes conclude. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. Illustrator’s agent: Jackie Kaiser, Westwood Creative Artists. (Mar.)