patience – Lisa Connors

Today’s review comes from a surprise find while perusing the children’s section of a library in Rochester, NY. I was visiting a dear friend I met while both of us attended our first picture book conference. patience: Discover how the best things in life take time by Rachel Williams and illustrated by Leonie Lord (Magic Cat Publishing, 2024). Similar to her book slow down that I reviewed in 2021, patience is a delightful way to spend time with your young reader.

Starting with one minute and working up to over 100 years, the book portrays an event – heart beating or a barn owl hunting or the moon phase or a century plant blooming for example – in two, two-page spreads that invite the reader to slow down and absorb the material. There are 18 events explained over 70 pages. This is not a book to race through or try to read all in one long sitting. The art work is whimsical and inviting for young readers and like slow down, full of details to invite reading again. I’ve included a photo of the table of contents for you to see the scope of the book’s content. It is an impressive amount of work in and of itself, but the chance to spend lots of quality time with your young reader and this book make it all the better. I hope you’ll check it out.

A personal writing journey update: I am ready to publish the book I have been working on since last February. Six friends/readers have given valuable feedback for which I am grateful. I am going to let it sit for a month and reread with the benefit of distance and hope it’s still ‘a go’. I am planning a quiet release, but since a cover reveal is often done with books, I will leave you with the cover image. Expected publication date is mid-June.