After such excitement, a trail mix power-up is needed, especially since the pair will have to do some rock climbing before marveling at the view from the top. And when a waterfall and river cross their path, the father reaches back to provide a reassuring and tender hand to his child, who wavers before making the trek over the river. When they reach a clearing, a mini-snowball fight ensues. (A word of warning: the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 made it illegal to collect bald eagle feathers, unless enrolled in a recognized Native American nation.) They even spot a bald eagle returning to its nest, and the child picks up a fallen feather. A ladybug is put on the spotlight under a loupe a butterfly is captured by the child taking a photo a herd of deer is spotted through a pair of binoculars and bear tracks are catalogued and sketched in a journal. Foxes, birds, and bunnies amble through the woods as the pair begins their climb. Wildlife begins to appear in the spreads. Once the car is packed, the cat stares from the window as the pair of adventurers leaves the city behind and travels up a mountain to the hiking trail’s entrance. Oswald, who has illustrated books such as Jory John’s Bad Seed series, has also worked as a character and concept designer on movies like Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Hotel Transylvania, so his ability to convey scenes reminiscent of a main character’s movie montage (say, a character getting ready for a battle, dance, or makeover) is displayed masterfully. The following pages reveal the child’s excitement for the dawning day and show in a series of vignettes how to prepare for a hike, all while the family’s orange tabby cat joins in on the excitement. As the father walks away from the bed, with closed eyes and his coffee cup still held firmly in his hand, the child begins to wake for the day. A bag of trail mix, hiking books, a map, a compass, and a tree seedling are among the items that fill the page, giving us clues about the adventure that the pair will take.

The child’s room is filled with nature-themed decorations. Hike, which received a starred review from the Horn Book, opens with a father holding a coffee cup and waking up his child. And I, the happiest of aunts, enjoyed being the audience as she further developed the narrative with every read-through. So, at the age of three, she was able to read to me this gorgeous book that tells the story of cross-generational traditions. Since she loves books, she was eager for me to read it to her and was delighted to see that it was a wordless picturebook. Luckily enough, I was hanging out with my youngest niece when I received Hike by Pete Oswald. Now that I’m living closer to my family, I have the advantage of a built-in picturebook audience in my nieces and nephew.

Hike pete oswald