Sister Spring

In this artful follow-up to Mother Winter, Carroll pays homage to the season of rebirth via poetic text and ethereal visuals evocative of water, foggy forests, and swirling meadows. In this painterly world, the personified source of spring emerges from the earth “with the first daffodil/ on the very last breath of frost.” Lines that rely on romantic imagery describe how “up from the dirt/ popped a wee green girl.../ with roots and sprouts and fingers and toes,/ and we called her Sister Spring.” Greeting the natural world (“She sent the fishy off to school/ and gave the cloud a shower”) and beloved by animals and vines alike, Sister Spring floats above high-reaching branches in garb that calls to mind a figure from a Gustav Klimt painting. Readers will find the outlines of some familiar forms from nature here—mice, birds, flowers, trees—and positive vibes of wonder, growth, and beauty permeating each page. Ages 7–9. (Mar.)