Publishers Weekly
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Portis narrates in a conversational tone-"Hey, water! I know you! You're all around." But her story tackles a tricky cognitive task-recognizing an element that masquerades in different states. Clean graphic spreads mimic a map, with aerial views of water on the surface of the Earth in the matte palette that Portis (Not a Box) fans know. Each watery object-"stream," "river," "ocean"-is captioned in block letters with running text that conveys the actions of liquid water: "You trickle... and gurgle... and rush toward the sea." But water is more complicated than this: "Water, even when you try to fool me, I know you." It can hang suspended in midair as vapor ("You hide in the air and drift") or be solid as "a rock that floats," or "soft as a feather and fancier than lace. But water, I know it's you!" The same element can exist in several different forms, the words imply-our senses don't always tell us the truth about identity. Notes at the end with additional illustrations provide more information about states of matter, the water cycle, and conservation. Ages 4-8. Agent: Deborah Warren, East West Literary. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

A girl talks to water about its varied qualities. First, she acknowledges its liquid form, pouring from faucets, spraying from showers and sprinklers, and flowing into stream, river, and ocean. There are quiet lakes and noisy pools, sliding teardrops and pouring rain. She also recognizes water vapor in steam, clouds, and fog. Frozen water can be hard as rock (ice cube, iceberg, ice rink) or soft as a feather (snow). But in any form, Hey, water, thank you! The text creates an easy-going, conversational tone while maintaining a good balance of scientific knowledge, everyday observation, and a child's perspective. In the book's artwork, sumi ink brush drawings delineate forms, while color is added digitally. The brushstrokes bring a sense of spontaneity and energy to the scenes, which show up beautifully from a distance. A large, labeled picture illustrates the water cycle. Appended pages include more detailed discussions of water's different forms as well as the importance of conservation. A handsome picture book that's well suited to reading aloud, especially for classroom units on water.--Carolyn Phelan Copyright 2019 Booklist

School Library Journal
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PreS-Gr 2-This simple introduction to water is an ideal read-aloud for the youngest scientists. Bold, beautiful, and equally simple illustrations are rendered with brush, sumi ink, and digital color. In addition to the brief running narrative, each page or spread features a word that refers to a different form of water ("tear") and descriptive text ("sometimes you slide down my cheek without a sound"). The book makes for a fun guessing game-children will enjoy figuring out, for instance, that "I stomp in you and scatter droplets everywhere" refers to a puddle. The book explores ways water can be found in homes, yards, and neighborhoods (in faucets, hoses, sprinklers) but also describes streams, rivers, oceans, dewdrops, clouds, fog, and icebergs. The final page shows a girl in the bath and her toy whale spouting sprays of water. Appended are accessible explanations about water forms, the water cycle, and conservation. The endpapers sport thick brushstroke waves in grays and blues. VERDICT Both school and public libraries will want this striking first science book on their shelves.-Barbara Auerbach, Cairo Public Library, NY © Copyright 2019. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.