Outside In, written by Deborah Underwood, reviewed by Judy Hauser

Summary: This is a very deep subject for a very young age group and it is beautiful. A young girl encounters the world inside and the nature and reality of outside. It is a serious look at how we exist in our world be that our personal world or the real, outside world. Somehow this seems extremely timely since we are all living in a time of pandemic. The girl in the story explores and examines the outside and notices how nature and reality make their marks on our lives. When she is inside she observes rays of light through the windows, shadows, the chirps and taps from birds, the cotton in her clothes, the tree wood that made her chair and so much more that the outside has contributed to her life. It is an interesting and poignant book for young children. The illustrations by Cindy Derby are beautiful and elegant and perfectly match the wonderful text. 

Straight Talk for Librarians: A deep, thoughtful book for children about nature and how it impacts our lives even in small ways.