Review Detail

Marsha Wilson Chall’s sweet new picture book, A SECRET KEEPS, follows a young boy as he visits his grandparents’ country home, imagining the secret that his grandfather promised him. Written in verse, Chall uses alliteration and gorgeous descriptive language to create a read aloud that will be requested again and again. My favorite line is, “Jillions of peeper frogs leap and peep out behind the barn. Grampa stokes a fire. Flames flick against the sky.” I also loved that the family counted down to big events in terms of sleeps: “I’ll be there in two sleeps where a secret keeps.”

Heather Solomon’s dreamy watercolors add to the atmosphere of the book and her detailed illustrations of the farm animals merit examination. I recommend this book to all families who escape to the country—and those who wish they could.