Rhythm

by Jackie Azúa Kramer, Taia Morley (Illustrator)

Overview

In this powerful story of resilience and hope, one girl observes her community through the changing rhythm of each season.

In a town once vibrant but now affected by unemployment and food insecurity, one girl watches the seasons go by. Winter’s rhythm brings hearty soups. Spring’s rhythm brings soft breezes and pale yellow afternoons. Through it all one tree is her steady, generous friend. From acorns and dried leaves, to crocuses, to views of the sky and stars, the tree brings her gifts each season. This soothing and inspiring read uses the rhythms of nature as a metaphor for strength, change, and hope.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433842634
Publisher:	American Psychological Association
Publication date:	02/13/2024
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,039,203
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Jackie Azúa Kramer studied at New York University and earned her MA at Queens College for Counseling in Education. She is the author of the award-winning The Green Umbrella, which is a Bank Street College Best Children’s Book of the Year, If You Want to Fall Asleep, and The Boy and the Gorilla. Jackie lives on Long Island, New York. Visit jackieazuakramer.com, @jackiekramer422 on Twitter, and @jackie_azua_kramer on Instagram.

Taia Morley is an illustrator who works on a variety of projects, from children’s books to packaging art to toys and bookmobiles. She lives in St. Paul, Minnesota. Visit taiamorley.com, @TaiaMorleyIllustration on Facebook, and @TaiaMorley on Twitter and Instagram.

Editorial Reviews

12/18/2023

A beloved tree helps steady a child during a year of financial hardship in this evocative portrait of nature’s grounding rhythms. Opening wintertime pages see a tan-skinned child sharing a wish (“I hope my father finds work again”) with an arboreal friend, which loses a limb over the winter. Soon, spring’s “pale yellow afternoons” bring daydreams in the shade of the tree. In summer, the protagonist fills a piggy bank and wishes on stars framed by the tree’s branches, while fall’s rhythm looks like homemade costumes in its moonlight shadows. After a second winter takes its toll on the tree, new life meaningfully emerges at its base, becoming inspiration for the child in spring. Washed with fuzzy textures, carefully drafted scenes align with the subtleties of the story’s socioeconomic context. Azúa Kramer and Morley successfully present a sensitive story of hope and rebirth in difficult circumstances. Ages 4–8. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly