Would You Come Too?
Written by Liz Garton Scanlon; Illustrated by Diana Sudyka
This week, we’re slowing things down.
For the better part of the first three years of my daughter’s life, WOULD YOU COME TOO? was easily my favorite bedtime story to read aloud. It’s that book.
Does anything of note happen in it? No. Is there some great big takeaway, some monumental finish that made me scream with laughter? No, and no.
But it’s soft. Quiet. Sweet, but not saccharine. A poem with absolutely gorgeous language that is a joy to speak. All pulled together with insanely rich, moving illustrations that are both whimsical and highly emotional.
In short, it’s a perfect, relaxing sleepy time book.
Written by Liz Garton Scanlon and illustrated by Diana Sudyka, WOULD YOU COME TOO? is, in my mind, a must-have picture book for very young children—one that introduces them to the beauty and power of the English language, while turning the volume down a notch and readying them for sound sleep.
Won’t you dive in with me?
“If we were walls, we’d have windows, and we'd throw them open wide. If we were the wind, we'd blow on in and invite everybody outside."
So begins Liz Garton Scanlon’s lilting, beguiling prose, which also clues us in to the structure of her poem: save for the end, every verse and line begins with “If we.” Visually, the story opens with one friend yelling to another through her open window, asking her to come out and play.
And…that’s mostly it. The book follows a group of neighborhood friends as they trek through streams and mud and forest, all the way out to the sea and back. To that end, WOULD YOU COME TOO? is a celebration of the freedom in early childhood—the wonder, beauty, and mystery of imagining, creativity, and above all, the natural world.
For me, it’s all about the “If we.” The repetition not only provides rhythmic structure for young listeners to latch onto, it’s also wonderfully comforting. If we allows children to put themselves in the (muddy) shoes of the characters. And a bonus—the rhythm of it lulls you to sleep!
Remember how I said this book is a true celebration of the natural world and the joy children find within it? Just look at this art:
I can practically feel the dew soaking through my socks and smell the dank dampness of the mud and moss. Part of the reason why I always loved this book (and could be found convincing my daughter to read it with me for the hundredth time) was the ART. I find the saturated colors and the movement from Sudyka’s brush strokes to be utterly captivating. I never seem to tire of studying these spreads!
Here’s my absolute favorite line from the entire book, which also segues into the grand finale:
“If we were rivers we’d run, boundless and wild and free.”
“Would you come too, if we asked you—would you run all the way to the sea?”
Ugh! Every time I read it aloud it still gets me.
As a lyrical poem, there’s no suspense or major resolution that drives the page turns. Instead, WOULD YOU COME TOO? invites you to slip into its quiet, cool depths. I suppose the only real tension is how the kiddos make it home, and this is laid out in the art.
Day turns to evening…
…And in the final spread, night has fallen. Bedtime for everyone!
I’ve marked this one as a great gift, as it would make an ideal baby shower or early parenthood gift.
Or, make it a two-fer: Liz Garton Scanlon and Marla Frazee’s ALL THE WORLD was my gateway book into the author’s work, and another of my absolute fave baby books of all time. A Caldecott honoree, ALL THE WORLD is a lyrical poem that’s wonderfully profound—a real “Baby’s First Buddhist Thought” kind of jam. Both are perfect gifts, and slightly more unique than your standard OH, THE PLACES YOU’LL GO or THE WONDERFUL THINGS YOU WILL BE and their ilk.
If you loved Diana Sudyka’s art, she released her debut PB text in 2023! Check out LITTLE LAND here.
Support the makers:
Diana Sudyka (Website | Instagram | Etsy | Big Cartel)
Buy your copy:
See you next week!
M E T A
In this Post: Would You Come To?, by Liz Garton Scanlon and Diana Sudyka
Keywords: Watercolor, outdoor play, poetry, lyrical picture book, read aloud, creek, ocean, bird, adventure, sleepy, calm, bedtime, lyrical poem