DAD AND ME IN THE MORNING

Before dawn, the boy puts on his hearing aids and clothes and quietly wakes his dad with a flashlight; the two are going on a special excursion to the nearby beach to smell the seaweed, watch such early risers as a rabbit or a hermit crab, and wade in the icy water. Such companionable idylls appear frequently as picture books; what makes this one special is the handsome impressionistic watercolors (apparently Steele's debut) evoking the shadowy, gradually brightening scene and the casually introduced fact that the young narrator is deaf but has many ways of communicating (including both lip reading and signing) and enjoys a grand range of observations and sensations, crowned by the glorious sunrise he shares with his dad. (Picture book. 4-8)