A Book of Maps for You

PreS-Gr 3–In an homage to his town, a young boy creates maps for his home’s new occupants in a wistful book about moving. The boy annotates his maps of the town with notes about the stores, neighborhood quirks (the middle swing at the playground goes the highest!), and its people. His maps are found by the homes’ newest and youngest occupant with wishes they will help her find her way. Illustrations are done with a soft palette using watercolor and pen. Readers will enjoy poring over the detailed maps, discovering new surprises with each reading. Some maps are overhead, and others show layouts of important places such as the child’s room where he gives instructions on how to position the bed to get the best use of the skylight, or the library where he shares the clever reading nooks and personable librarian. Despite an overwhelming sense of melancholy (it’s clear the mapmaker will miss their old home and community), the wish to help the new occupants love their town as he does is heartwarming and effectively upbeat.