Next to Me

In an opening collage made of hand-painted paper shapes, a child wearing a backpack waves to an adult leading a scooter and two dogs: “After my school day is done/ I see PEPPER/ Next to PEANUT/ Next to MAMA!” As the four next head through a city neighborhood, obser- vational text considers the changing landscape—on one page, the child spots “LINES on the street/ Next to the WALKING PERSON/ Let’s go!” The lines prove to be a crosswalk, and the walking person... a pedestrian? No, the image on the lit-up walk signal across the road. Succeeding spreads by married team Salmieri (Before, Now) and Haas, making her picture book debut, invite readers to look closely at the artwork, checking what they see against the narrator’s stated perceptions. On one page, a salon, deli, and laundromat are introduced via pictorial signs that exhibit “BIG SCISSORS/ Next to SANDWICHES/ Next to SPINNY CLOTHES.” It’s an absorbing look at how a child interprets their surroundings, which become more personal as the protagonist eats dinner and heads to bed. Characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 3–5. (May)