Spring is a time we go outside to enjoy nature: it’s not too hot nor too cold no matter where we live. And there’s a lot going on in the spring too: new flowers budding, birds singing, and all sorts of animals awakening.  It’s a great time to reconnect with the outside that’s been waiting inside all of us.

In Outside In, a 2021 Caldecott Honor Book, “Deborah Underwood’s lyrical language and Cindy Derby’s emotive illustration evoke the beauty, simplicity, and wonder that awaits us all . . . Outside.”

The opening lines have such heart, making me feel sad and full of hope at the same time:

“Once we were part of Outside

and Outside was part of us.

There was nothing between us.

Now sometimes even when we’re outside . . .

we’re inside.”

The image of the girl riding in a car through the countryside, seeing the outdoors as separate from herself, reminds me how often we take nature for granted. The idea of the Outside as a playmate, beckoning everyone to play, makes me hopeful that readers will put down this book and go outside. Or better yet, take it with them on their next play date . . .

Outside.