Do I have to wear a coat? A journey through the seasons by Rachel Isadora

This is for every parent or caregiver who's ever had to answer this question. So, basically, all of them!

In a style that harks back to Ruth Krauss, Isadora walks readers through the season asking for each one, "Do I have to wear a coat?" It starts with a spring day, no more coats except for raincoats! A group of pudgy children with thin legs and a diversity of hair types and skin colors play on a farm, ride bikes, and go on picnics. In the summer the kids have cool treats, play outdoors (two children in wheelchairs are shown playing tennis) and sit around a campfire. There are beach visits, rainbows, and four-leaf-clovers.

Fall begins with sweaters and falling leaves, shows kids playing soccer (one is in forearm crutches with a missing leg), visiting apple orchards and pumpkin fields, and celebrating Halloween. In the winter there are chilly scenes outdoors, as the tree that signals each season sits bare and chilly in the snow. Kids put on their coats, play in the snow, and then cuddle up inside with a book and friends.

The final page lists all the seasons again and what kids wore in each, from a raincoat in spring to a coat in winter. The art is spot art, with light shadows cast around the groupings of children in different seasons. This isn't a straight narrative so much as a celebration of different seasons, marked by traditions, clothing, and weather. It is definitely set in a climate with four well-defined seasons, and even then depicts a much milder spring than I've ever experienced in Wisconsin. The children show a diversity of skin colors, hair types, and some physical disabilities, but all present as healthy, happy children They also appear to be generally economically privileged, visiting the beach, wearing well-fitting and apparently new and clean clothing, ice skating, and more. However, there is a nice range of activities, including public parks, that should offer something for every child to relate to.

ISBN: A heartfelt look at the joys of each season; purchase in places with four seasons, where you can never have too many of these books, or if you want to introduce children to other climates.

ISBN: 9780525516606; Published March 2020 by Nancy Paulsen/Penguin; Review copy provided by publisher; Donated to the library