Picture Book - We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom

2021 CALDECOTT WINNER

Illustrated by Michaela Goade

2020 Roaring Brook Press

HC $17.99

40 pgs.

Goodreads rating:  4.53 - 2103 ratings

My rating:  5
Endpapers: Bright Yellow

1^st line/s:  "Water is the first medicine, Nokomis told me."

My comments:  Gorgeous, just gorgeous.  Tristan (10) and I read this together, and as we turned each page we gasped at the beauty of the illustrations.  It led to a wonderful discussion of what's been happening, which Tristan had no idea about. I'm not crazy about the title, and I'm not even sure why. But that's only a silly little negative.  Exceptional book.

Goodreads:  Inspired by the many Indigenous-led movements across North America, We Are Water Protectors issues an urgent rallying cry to safeguard the Earth's water from harm and corruption--a bold and lyrical picture book written by Carole Lindstrom and vibrantly illustrated by Michaela Goade.

Water is the first medicine.
It affects and connects us all . . .

When a black snake threatens to destroy the Earth
And poison her people's water, one young water protector
Takes a stand to defend Earth's most sacred resource.

POETRY PICTURE BOOK - Water Can Be ... - Laura Purdie Salas

Illustrated by Violete Dabija

2014 Millbrook Press/ Lerner Books

32 pages

Goodreads rating: 4.47

My rating: 4.5

Endpapers: Moss Green

Title Page: simple, perfect- bluey greeney with white raindrops and blue and green circles overlapping each other

Illustrations:  I'm not sure of the media used...the pages have no white, they're entirely covered and it almost seems like some of it is sponged...I'd like to know how she did them.

1^st line/s:  Water is water --- / it's puddle, pond, sea. / When springtime comes splashing, / the water flows free.

My comments:  This is a beautiful book...both in words and pictures. They go together really well.    You'd think with only two words on each page it would be simple...but it's not.  It's much more intricate, especially when you think about what each descriptor - all of water - means:  Otter feeder.  Downhill speeder..... Salmon highway.  Eagle flyway....  Storm creator.  Decorator....  Mmmm hmmm. Delicious words.

Goodreads:  Water can be a 

Thirst quencher 
Kid drencher 
Cloud fluffer 
Fire snuffer 

Find out about the many roles water plays in this poetic exploration of water throughout the year.

The Water Gift and the Pig of the Pig - Jacqueline Briggs Martin

Illustrated by Linda S. Wingerter
Houghton Mifflin, 2003
32 pages
Rating: 4
Endpapers: light blue

Set in Waldo County, Maine, this is the story of a girl named Isabel who lives with her grandparents. Her grandfather is a water man. He was a sailor until he married and settled down and is a gifted dowser. His divining rod is a Y-shaped stick. He finds more than water, he finds lost animals, too.

When he feels he has lost his touch, and when the family's pet pig goes missing, Isabel discovers that she, too, has the water gift.

Illustrations are framed with a thin black line and a white border. They are really lovely and depict rural Maine and the seacoast perfectly.

Bot the author and illustrator grew up in Maine. They've given this book the right feel.