Sea Star Wishes: Poems from the Coast

Ode—a poet, writer, and children’s performer—shares the wonders of the seashore, both natural and manmade, in a collection of 20 poems. The tone ranges from gently observant to comical, but both text and art are at their strongest during the book’s more contemplative moments. A dramatically decorated stunt kite curves through the air like a swallow (“It circles/ and lunges,/ lurches,/ dives,/ climbs,/ and plunges”), and elsewhere, jellyfish rise majestically from the deep. Brooks tends to give the animal creatures cartoonish facial expressions that don’t quite match the mood of even the lighter poems. Still, readers, whether coastal or landlocked, should enjoy this lighthearted take on eels, geoducks, tide pool denizens, and more. Ages 4–8. (Apr.)