Three children and three different and diverse families are the focus of Soon, Your Hands by Jonathan Stutzman. The families are two dads and a son, a mother and father and daughter (who is hearing different), and a young boy with this mother and grandmother. We follow them (what seems to be one day) where one dad goes off to work, where the other stays home with their son to make a surprise birthday party. One father flies off (as a piolet) and the mother and daughter have a day at the beach, and the last family, while mom sleeps (as she seems to be a doctor or nurse with the night shift) grandmother and grandson go to the local community garden.
These simple acts shape each child for what they will become later. And in the meantime, the narrator is telling the story of how now you are small, but how each day you grow. And one day your hand will be too large to fit “in mine” (the parent/narrator) but until then, they will enjoy the moment.
Elizabeth Lilly has a fun style to their artwork. The illustrations are simple, expressive, and slightly cartoon-like without being cartoonish. They are bright colors, interesting details (sometimes a lot are on the page, sometimes minimal) and fun to see. The community around our three families, plus the families themselves come to life.
A cozy book that would be great as a bedtime story, that fits almost all ages. A nice new baby or first birthday gift.
