Yoo and McGhee (who recently collaborated on Only a Witch Can Fly
) reunite, as meditative linocuts ground abstract poetry. A repeated refrain (“So many doors in all your days,/ so much to wonder about./ Who will you be and where will you go?/ And how will you know?”) addresses readers directly, as McGhee foresees what lies ahead and underlines the gifts and strengths the child already has. “You are a star trailing fire at night./ You are a bird urgent for flight./ You are braver than you know.” The words offer encouragement, but from on high: the speaker is an adult, powerful and all-knowing. Yoo counters with images of a girl in a raincoat and boots and her dog, who run, sail, fly, and tumble from one landscape into the next. To accompany the line “You are hope that wants to take wing,” the girl blows a handful of leaves into the air, which, as they rise, become a flock of birds and fly away. It’s these earnest depictions of small miracles that emphasize the magic and adventure that life offers. All ages. (Jan.)
