We’ve Got the Whole World in Our Hands

A large variegated ball of yarn lands at a child’s feet. First, it seems to entangle her, but the girl quickly figures out what to do: she flings it out lariat style, and it begins to thread together children around the globe, offering a visual celebration of how they care for the planet and each other. All of this unfolds to the lyrics of the classic hymn of unity, against which bright mixed-media art by López (Drum Dream Girl) makes it easy for readers to grasp the yarn as a metaphor for “the whole world” that they steward and share. In one spread (“We’ve got everybody here in our hands”), the ball and yarn pass over a sea of outstretched hands in different skin tones. On the next (“We’ve got the whole world in our hands”), the yarn has formed crisscrossing tight wires, enabling a dark-skinned boy who’s wearing shorts to greet a white-skinned, bundled-up girl from a snowy climate. Earnest and openhearted, it’s the kind of book in which every inhabitant wears a big smile, happy and inspired by the knowledge that each one matters to the others. Ages 3–5. [em](Oct.) [/em]