Meet Me by the Sea

A quiet journey of independence starts in a house where two adults are seen immersed in desk work. A frustrated pale-skinned child in a striped cap and laced-up boots stands bundled up for an outing, and leaves a note for the adults to find. “Sometimes I feel invisible to the world,” begins the narrative, “so I go to my favorite place where every tree and every bush is familiar.” In the woods, the protagonist steps across a stream, then sees a fox dart across the path. As the sun sets, the child spreads out a mat, then a sleeping bag. After dark, Levi (A Little Courage) paints the narrator gazing up at the sky, eyes wide, cap still on: “The night feels so vast and endless, and I feel so small.” But the fox reappears, and dawn holds an affirming surprise, then a happy reunion at a favorite spot by the sea. Levi’s rhythmic watercolor spreads carry most of the story’s emotion. The graceful curves of trees waving in the wind, the gold of the grass, and the russet of the fox testify to ways that solitude can give sustenance when people can’t, and offers refuge until they can. Ages 4–8. [em](Feb.) [/em]