THE WHOLE GREEN WORLD

Amid swirls of brightly colored birds, bugs, seeds, leaves, wild creatures, buildings and people, a child ties her shoes, then goes out to plant, nurture and spread a garden—all to the tune of Johnston’s song-like verses: “I’ve got a little pair of shoes. / (How I love my little shoes!) / Got a little pair of shoes / to dance the whole green world.” Young children will happily dance along—if they can tear themselves away from Kleven’s paint and decorated-paper collages, that is. Her scenes build and build as each verse features another creature. Some serious searching will reveal repeat visitors, some upside down on the other side of the world and some in the farthest regions. Facing each busy scene, the words are encircled by whatever they salute—ants, the sun, even the phases of the moon. A bouncy, lyrical alternative or companion for the likes of David Mallett’s Inch By Inch: The Garden Song (1995), illus by Ora Eitan, or Frank Asch’s Earth and I (1994). (Picture book. 5-7)