ACHUKA Book of the Day 30 May 2025
“Kemp’s pensive, elegiac tale unpacks the hard-earned minutiae of a farming family’s everyday lives, as well as the encroaching consequences of human-fueled climate change, told from a young girl’s compelling, vivid perspective. Each line mounts to a gradual call to action by the closing spread. Espinosa’s striking pencil-etched artwork portrays arid earth, parched skies, and resilient brown-skinned people… Tender, expressive, and important.” KIRKUS
“Espinosa’s earthy, purposefully dull hues call up the arid, dry desperation of a dying farm, with a scorching yellow sky, dehydrated greens, and faded reds. One striking spread contrasts with the muted colors, showing the beautifully jewel-toned, abundant river of her father’s childhood to highlight both the differences and connections between past and present. The thoughtful text has a lyrical, meditative quality to it, and the statement from the girl’s father about the drought being caused by humans is notable for a picture book, leaving the implications open enough to allow opportunities for further discussion with an adult about the causes of climate change.” MUSE
“A book that motivates young readers to learn more about tending the land, growing food, and the impact of human overdevelopment on the environment.” SLJ
A valuable picture book about the important part played by family farms and those who tend them. Although focusing on a farm in Texas, it’s an important one for a UK audience, given the chasm that is often seen to exist between government and the farming community and the failure of many to connect the food they eat with the work and anxiety involved in growing and nurturing it.
In this lyrical picture book about the importance of caring for the land, a child and her father wish for a brighter, greener future for the parched earth around their home. When a girl finds a horned toad among the rain-starved squash, tomatoes, and poblanos on her family’s Texas farm, her Pa tells her that, if she kisses it on the head she’ll get to make one wish. What will she wish for? Generations ago, when the girl’s ancestors lived on this land, it was lush and green, full of life. Now, because of a decades-long drought, the soil is parched and crops are dying. The girl sees the worry lines on Pa’s face getting deeper. She knows she has to do something to help. And so, thinking about the people who lived on this land before her, and all those who will live on it after her, she wishes for rain. This poignant father-daughter story reminds us that change often starts with a simple wish — with a dream for a world that could be.
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