A Walk in the Woods

In this moving account of loss, a boy takes a walk in the woods and makes a discovery that changes his understanding of his father.

A week after the funeral
I stare in the morning mirror,
angry that my father's eyes
stare back at me.

Confused and distraught after the death of his father, a boy opens an envelope he left behind and is surprised to find a map of the woods beyond their house, with one spot marked in bright red. But why? The woods had been something they shared together, why would his father want him to go alone?

Slowly, his mind settles as he sets off through the spaces he once explored with his dad, passing familiar beech and black oak trees, flitting Carolina wrens, and a garter snake they named Sal. When he reaches the spot marked on the map, he finds pages upon pages of drawings of woodland creatures, made by his father when he was his age. What he sees shows him a side of his dad he never knew, and something even deeper for them to share together. His dad knew what he really needed was a walk in the woods.

New York Times bestselling author Nikki Grimes and the Caldecott Award winning illustrator Jerry Pinkney spent the early days of the pandemic emailing back and forth and talking about collaborating on a book, with Jerry sharing all of the pictures he took of the woods around his house. From this, they conjured a story of a boy's struggle with grief, and all the things he sees and feels on a walk through the forest.

Jerry sadly passed away in the fall of 2021, but not before he delivered tight pencil sketches of the forests he loved. When his son Brian took on the task of completing the illustrations, he found himself connecting with his father in a whole new way, his experience mirroring that of the boy in the book. The result is a simultaneously touching and deeply authentic story about the ways shared pastimes keep us close to those we've lost.

A New York Times Best Children's Book of the Year
A Smithsonian Magazine Best Children's Book of the Year
An NPR Book We Love
A Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of the Year
A Horn Book Fanfare Book
A Bookstagang Best Illustrated Picture Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
A Shelf Awareness Best Book of the Year!
One of BookPage's Ten Best Books of the Year
A CSMCL Best Multicultural Children's Book of the Year
A Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
An Evanston Public Library Great Book for Kids

Author: Nikki Grimes
Publisher: Neal Porter Books
Published: 09/12/2023
Pages: 40
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.00lbs
Size: 11.10h x 8.90w x 0.63d
ISBN: 9780823449651
Audience: Ages 4-8

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 3.5
Point Value: 0.5
Interest Level: Lower Grade
Quiz #/Name: 553836 / Walk in the Woods


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 07/15/2023
Publishers Weekly 08/07/2023
Horn Book Magazine 09/01/2023 pg. 54
Booklist 09/01/2023 pg. 97
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 09/01/2023 - Book Of Special Distinction
BookPage 09/01/2023
Shelf Awareness 11/21/2023
School Library Journal 09/22/2023 pg. 1
Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/2024 - Outstanding, Noteworthy In Style

About the Author
Nikki Grimes is the recipient of the Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award, the ALAN Award for outstanding contributions to young adult literature, the Children's Literature Legacy Award, the Virginia Hamilton Literary Award, and the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children. Her memoir, Ordinary Hazards, received both a Sibert and a Printz Honor. Other distinguished works include the Coretta Scott King Award winner Bronx Masquerade, and Coretta Scott King Author Honor books Jasmin's Notebook, Talkin' About Bessie, Dark Sons, Words with Wings, and The Road to Paris. She is also the creator of the popular Meet Danitra Brown. Ms. Grimes lives in Corona, California.

Jerry Pinkney was the author and illustrator of many books for young readers, including the Orbis Pictus Award winner A Place to Land and The Lion and the Mouse, for which he earned a Caldecott Medal. He received five Caldecott Honors, five Coretta Scott King Awards, four Coretta Scott King Honors, and five New York Times Best Illustrated Book awards. He died in 2021.

Brian Pinkney is the son of Jerry Pinkney. He continued illustration of A Walk in the Woods after his father passed away, supplementing Jerry's sketches with watercolor painting. He has illustrated many books for children, including Duke Ellington by his wife Andrea Pinkney, and The Faithful Friend by Robert D San Souci, both of which received Caldecott Honors. He also received the Coretta Scott King Book Award for In the Time of Drums by Kim L. Siegelson. He lives with his family in Brooklyn, New York.