INSIDE ALL

Mason and Welch present a story that folds in on itself and then out. Swirling colors and abstract spirals telescope from the universe, to the galaxy, to a valley and a village, to a home, a child’s bedroom, the child snuggled beneath a quilt, to the child’s own heart. With a quote from Einstein as its touchstone, the text opens into sweet rhythms: “Inside all / Is a universe / Energy flowing. / Inside the universe / Is a galaxy / Milky and glowing.” With richly colored mixed-media swirls that resolve into hills and trees, windows and bedrooms, each opening displays double-page, full-bleed pictures with a single white star superimposed throughout. The last line of each three-line text curves to echo the spiral motif. The images tend toward the abstract but are recognizable, creating a very gentle and quite moving bedtime story. (Picture book. 4-8)