Leaps and Bounce

The team behind 2013's Rooting for You returns with another motivation-minded, pun-titled story for those in the midst of growing up. Instead of an underground seed blossoming into a flower, this book opens underwater, where clusters of eye-shaped eggs float amid the marshy plants: "Who's there inside?/ What will you be?/ Spring has sprung/ a mystery!" Only the very youngest readers won't be able to identify the tadpoles that later burst from the eggs and eventually sprout legs, developments underscored by Hood's recurring assertion that "changes come to all who grow." Cordell's squiggly cartooning is well suited to the tadpoles' youthful energy, and appearances from newts, egrets, and other animals give a hint of the frogs' broader environment. Multiple horizontal gatefolds add a touch of drama, and the enthusiasm in Hood's rhymes is unflagging, and she even manages to rhyme "amphibians" with "shenanigans." The idea that physical growth and development bring new opportunities and adventures comes across loud and clear. Ages 3%E2%80%935. Author's agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. Illustrator's agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. (Mar.)