You Are the Loveliest

Törnqvist’s playful and evocative mixed-media artwork elevates this slim volume of short translated verses by the Hagens. Featuring a white-presenting child reflecting on nature, family members, and concepts, each spread resonates with a distinctive, textured color palette. Some of the poems, such as “Big Feet,” are simple in their appeal: “My new shoes/ are so big/ they’ll carry this girl/ all over the world.” Others, like “Dancing,” conjure images as magical as the accompanying art; set against a swirl of red and golden autumn foliage, the poem opens, “dust specks in a beam of light.” Though not all of the poems are memorable, the voice is always self-assured, and the consistent rendering of a child as small in a large environment echoes many children’s perceptions of the enormity of the surrounding world. Ages 3–9. (Mar.)