Joy

A diverse set of children play and work on a farm amid a sea of sunny green grass. Each illustration is accompanied by a short sentence encouraging mindfulness and finding joy in life’s simple pleasures and moments—”Find joy in stories,” “Find joy in snuggles,” “Find joy in caring,” etc. The illustrations follow the children throughout a day, where children may see the animals evening routine mirrors their own—meal time, bath time, quiet time, and finally bedtime. Each page abounds with details to point out and extend the reading experience for young readers(e.g. animals and plants to identify, the finer points of caring for horses and what different animals eat, etc.) and while the illustrations themselves are less charming and whimsical than much of Wilson’s past work (ABCs, Landmarks, Opposites), the added realism may be necessary for this book about finding the joy in the here and now. A nod to finding joy despite some amount of adversity would have been welcome, but the positive messages about finding joy in working together and caring and in everything around us make this an enjoyable addition to the board book collection.