WHY ARE YOU SO QUIET?

Is it better to listen than to be noisy?

Quiet Myra Louise thinks so. Soft-voiced, she enjoys silence and is rewarded by attending closely to sounds. Her silent nature leads Mom, classmate Jeremy, and her teacher each to ask the titular question. Others’ frustration heightens Louise’s own: She can’t answer. But she has an idea: Gathering various items and poring over books, Myra Louise builds a listening machine complete with earpiece and becomes a better listener. Adding another earpiece to the contraption enhances other people’s aural experiences, too: Mom hears the enchanting sound of the story she reads aloud—then reads extra chapters. At school, Myra Louise invites Jeremy to listen to a ladybug. The tale conveys a positive message about the joys of quietude and listening but is unconvincing. A mechanical contrivance comprised of found bits isn’t required for mindful attention: Isn’t a careful listener one’s own “listening machine”? How does the machine actually work anyway? The story also never indicates that others become so taken with Myra Louise’s ideas they permanently adopt her method of engaging with the world, and Jeremy’s joining in on the machine ends the proceedings abruptly. The illustrations are serviceable but colorful and present freckled, wide-eyed, brown-haired Myra Louise and her mother as white; some classmates are racially diverse.

Well-meaning but misses the mark.