About the Holiday

Today’s picture books are amazing! Offering inspiration, characters that really speak to kids, moments to laugh out loud or reflect, glimpses into history, revelations in science, and much of the best art currently being produced, picture books defy their slim appearance with content that can change young lives. Reading a wide variety of books to children from birth on up is one of the most rewarding activities you can do. Make choosing the books to read a family affair! Kids love picking out their own books and sharing cozy and fun story times with you!

Thanks to Beaming Books for sharing a digital copy of The Girl with Big, Big Questions for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

The Girl with Big, Big Questions

Written by Britney Winn Lee | Illustrated by Jacob Souva

There once was a girl who was always asking questions about everything she saw and heard and thought. “Her days were filled with adventures galore,/ since her mind was so full of wonder. / ‘How long can a turtle stay in its shell? / Why does lightning come before thunder?’” From morning to bedtime she questioned her mom, her neighbors, her classmates, her teachers. “‘Could I fly if I got a good running start? / The nearest volcano is . . .where? / Are monsters real? What’s Spanish for blue? / Is it okay to cut my own hair?’”

At first everyone tried to answer all the girl’s questions, but as they piled up, people began to just roll their eyes and, finally, her friends at school told her “‘Please stop! Just quit it!’” The girl felt embarrassed. She “tried to quiet her thoughts” and not ask so many questions. But then one day she saw a bird making a nest in a broken fence close to the ground.

celebrate-picture-books-picture-book-review-the-girl-with-big-big-questions-tree-house

Image copyright Jacob Souva, 2021, text copyright Britney Winn Lee, 2021. Courtesy of Beaming Books.

She wondered why the bird didn’t choose a tree for its nest, so she went to the library and did some research. Outside, she made observations and came up with an answer. Then she made a report to her class: “‘There are not enough trees in our town!’” Now her friends were asking questions about what they could do to help and devised a plan to plant “more trees in their parks.” And the girl understands that asking big questions is good and can lead to important actions and changes; “Asking questions is how we all grow!”

In her enchanting story about a girl who’s part super-observer, part philosopher, and completely engaged with her world, Britney Winn Lee invites readers to also look outward and inward and discover the questions that inform their particular world view and call to action. With humor and an intriguing list of questions to get kids thinking, Lee’s bouncy rhymes will pique their curiosity and instill a desire to learn not only about the big stuff, but about all the tiny Who? What? Why? When? and Hows? that make life interesting and always new.

Jacob Souva’s charming and lovely illustrations will delight kids as the adorable wide-eyed girl is surrounded by speech bubbles and clouds full of images representing her questions. Readers can almost hear the girl’s questions as the bubbles bump up against each other, overlap, and expand to fill two-page spreads, adding a vivacious energy to the story. Souva depicts the classmates’ admonition and the girl’s searching for her own answers with clever metaphorical imagery.

When the girl’s classmates tell her to quit asking so many questions, the day turns rainy and the previously vivid colors of her thoughts and questions become the muted panels of her enveloping umbrella. The vibrant colors return in the library’s shelves of books as the girl finds answers to the one question about the bird’s nest that occupies her mind. The girl’s influence on her classmates is clearly shown in the final spreads as each child is paired with a questioning bubble of their own.

An engaging way to encourage curiosity, a questioning mind, and a love of learning and doing, The Girl with Big, Big, Questions would make an inspiring addition to home, classroom, and public library bookshelves.

You’ll also want to check out Britney Winn Lee and Jacob Souva’s The Boy with Big, Big Feelings, a story for all children who are sensitive to their own emotions, empathize with the cares of other people and the world, and are looking to make friends and make a difference.

Ages 5 – 8

Beaming Books, 2021 | ISBN 978-1506473789

Discover more about Britney Winn Lee and her books, visit her website.

To learn more about Jacob Souva, his books, and his art, visit his website.