That's Papa's Way

In this simply told story, a daughter and her Papa spend the day fishing. The importance of the ordinary comes alive because of the young girl's narrative. "The sun is rising like a big yellow balloon. The water is still." This is how a child looks at and describes her world. `Papa's way' is to be himself. Papa picks up worms with his fingers, "I scoop them up with my shovel." Papa whistles as he rows, "I sing "Whoosh"." Papa's way is to allow his daughter to be her self, to respond to things her way. The intimacy of the story becomes dynamic due to the full, naturally rich illustrations of Lauren Castillo. The eyes have it: the way Papa and daughter look at each other is exceptionally beguiling. Broad pictures and the short narration make it a perfect read-aloud, but this book begs to be read again in quiet moments.

Papa and his little girl are holding hands as they walk down the dirt path away from the house. Mama waves goodbye to them, but they don't seem to notice as it is early in the morning and they are heading to the woods to find some earthworms. Once that job is finished, they get the life jackets and fishing rods and head to the water front where she tumbles into the boat, anxious to go fishing. They face in other in the dinghy as he rows. "He whistles with each swaying movement, because that's Papa's way" She sings "Whoosh as each small wave washes against the side of the boat." Sometimes that is the way little girls talk about how the waves move the boat. He casts, she drops her line next to the boat, but both smile and look content. Papa can wait patiently, but she is fidgety. It's nice to be out on the lake together. Soon a fish is caught and dropped into a bucket. "You'll get one soon," he says to her. She casts a disappointed look at her line, but wait . . . is that a fish lurking in the lily pads underneath the boat? It's always fun when there are parent/child days. Each child is a unique individual and isn't quite the same as their parents. This is a charming story of a father and daughter outing where a little girl is just beginning to notice that they each do things a bit differently, but in the end she notices that their love for each other is expressed in exactly the same way. The art work has a darkened, but very appealing and comforting look about it. This would be a wonderful cuddle up tale to be shared between a father and daughter!