We All Play
by Julie Flett (Author) Julie Flett (Illustrator)
Animals and kids love to play! This wonderful book celebrates diversity and the interconnectedness of nature through an Indigenous perspective, complete with a glossary of Cree words for wild animals at the back of the book, and children repeating a Cree phrase throughout the book.
Readers will encounter birds who chase and chirp, bears who wiggle and wobble, whales who swim and squirt, owls who peek and peep, and a diverse group of kids who love to do the same, shouting: We play too! / kimêtawânaw mînaA beautiful ode to the animals and humans we share our world with, We All Play belongs on every bookshelf.
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Publishers Weekly
Cree-Métis artist Flett (Birdsong) starts with quiet, elegant portraits of animals at play attended by brief, motion-filled lines of text. Velvety dark brown rabbits jump across the page ("Animals hide/ and hop"); a fox investigates a turtle as kits peer timidly from the page's edge ("and sniff/ and sneak"); an owlet peeks out from the page as others cluster together, their new wings delicately etched ("and peek/and peep"). Then a group of small children of various skin tones appears, leaping, jumping, and lying on their backs in tall grass as butterflies flit above. "We play too! kimêtawânaw mîna" they say. An author's note defines the Cree phrase as "living in relationship and in care to one another" and discusses the kinship between animals and people, whether "running and hopping through the grass or... pondering creatures in the creek." In spare compositions, Flett aptly underlines this idea by showing animals and humans embracing play in similar ways (snakes slide, children sled down a hill in the snow), until at last, "slowly, side by side," everyone sleeps. Also includes a glossary and pronunciation guide. Ages up to 7. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (May)
Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.Review quotes
"The bold and simple illustrations and short but dynamic text make this a fantastic book for very young readers."
—BookRiot
Julie Flett is a Cree-Métis author, illustrator, and artist who has received numerous awards for her books, including the New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children's Book Award, two Governor General's Awards, the American Indian Youth Literature Award, and the TD Canadian Children's Literature Award. Her books have been selected for Best of the Year lists by dozens of media outlets, including The Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, The Horn Book, School Library Journal, The Globe and Mail, and Kirkus Reviews. Her critically acclaimed picture books Birdsong, We All Play, and Still This Love Goes On (with Buffy Sainte-Marie) are also published by Greystone Kids. Flett lives in Victoria, Canada.
JUV051000 - Juvenile Fiction | Imagination & Play
JUV011040 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | United States - Native American
JUV002370 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Baby Animals
