(2) K-3 Translated by David Boyd. Illustrated by Ryôji Arai. An adult and child set off in a rowboat for an overnight camping trip in this author-illustrator team's (Every Color of Light, rev. 9/20) latest collaboration. Osada's poetic text is a series of phrases and riddles exploring everything water can be, from the profound ("It has no color, but can be any color. It has no shape, but can take any shape") to the playful ("It is the pee of life"). Arai's impressionistic illustrations, in bright shades of sky blue and spring green, move the story forward while giving form to Osada's observations. Some paintings focus on the concrete, such as a waterfall demonstrating how water "cascades and courses." Others match the text's fancifulness, as when the characters row on a sea of stars. The words and pictures together become the story of an older person imparting wisdom to a younger one as they explore the world together.

Reviewer: Adrienne L. Pettinelli | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2022