NONFICTION - ELEMENTARY

Woody’s Words: Woodrow Wilson Rawls and Where the Red Fern Grows

by Lisa Rogers (text) & illus. by Susan Reagan
Astra/Calkins Creek. Sept. 2025. 32p. Tr $18.99. ISBN 9781662680298. K-Gr 3
COPY ISBN
K-Gr 3–This beautiful picture book biography covers the upbringing of author Woodrow Wilson Rawls and the influences in his life that resulted in the creation of the classic, Where the Red Fern Grows./i>. In stunning verse and illustrations, readers are taken through his childhood with potent glimpses into the man and author he would become. The book extends the story into his adulthood; the inclusion of quotes by Rawls describing different parts of his life offer an intriguing view on how he saw himself and his work. Reagan’s illustrations all but steal readers’ attention; variously hued watercolors create backgrounds from which the direct action of the story seems to pop off the page. Back matter includes more biographical information.
VERDICT Recommended for all biography collections, this book would work beautifully in lockstep with any classroom unit on Where the Red Fern Grows.
Reviewed by Maria Graybosch , Sep 01, 2025

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