(2) PS Illustrated by Qin Leng. Beginning and ending with the first day of a new year, this joyous picture book celebrates all the small moments in between as experienced by a young girl in a family of four. Soft ink and watercolor spot art and spreads create warm, cozy family and school vignettes. Sometimes the girl is the subject of the illustration and sometimes she is in the background, though the text is always about her relationship to the moment. Most of the year is told in firsts--"First wake-up," "First waffles," "First fight with your brother," "First stories"--although there are some humorously noted "seconds" due to antics with umbrellas, haircuts, snow days, and crushes, and there are many documented fights with the brother (at least 384). Spring brings first rain, green, and short sleeves. Summer brings the first ice-cream truck and the first sunburn. Fall brings the first new teacher. The seasons of the year, the tenuous connections among firsts, and the illustrated details create a gentle story line to follow, in spite of its episodic nature. As the year comes to an end, the final pages echo the opening ones, though now the girl is experiencing "last wake-up" and "last stories" before the next new year launches a whole new collection of firsts. While there is plenty of wistful nostalgia here, there is also strong encouragement to experience and revel in the simple pleasures of each season and to welcome each new year with a clean slate.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021