COTTON CANDY CLOUDS

A rabbit describes a magical journey to the clouds in this debut board book.

A bespectacled little gray rabbit fancies that if it could touch the wispy, cotton candy–colored clouds illuminating the morning sky, they would feel like a cuddly, fluffy teddy bear. They would smell like fresh-washed laundry and be bouncy like a trampoline. The clouds would be so yummy to eat—like fruit “sprinkled with sugar,” the animal thinks—that while you danced on them, you could scoop up a taste to share with friends. Illustrated by veteran author/artist Harvey (More than a Best Friend, 2018, etc.), the tender story offers both sighted and visually impaired children imagination-stirring ways to use their senses to interpret their surroundings. Harvey’s skilled, double-page–spread, oh-so-soft watercolor images are a cozy complement to Moore’s vivid use of language—“a melody coming from the clouds...like a happy lullaby” is created by a guitar’s “quiet vibration,” a “slow thump of the bass,” and the “twinkling” of a harp. The hand-lettered look of the text on the high-quality, heavy paperboard pages adds flair, floating and curving, dropping and rising with the clouds. Touchingly, Moore dedicates the book to her son “who cannot see the clouds” and to his brother, who “tirelessly” depicts the world for him. (A Braille version of the work is also available.)

An animal tale with heart and charm for visually impaired and sighted children, sensitively crafted with inventive illustrations and word pictures.