Review Detail

Backpack Explorer: City Walk: What Will You Find?

Kids Nonfiction 235

Not your average "walk in the park"

March 13, 2026 (Updated: June 19, 2026)

Overall rating

4.7

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

5.0

Learning Value

5.0

Storey Publishing's Backpack Explorer series generally take readers outside to look at rocks, trees, or the night sky, but this edition is devoted to a variety of natural items that can be found in an urban setting. There are great tips for using the book and noticing the world through sight and sound. Starting with a variety of plants that might grow in sidewalks, this continues with some ideas for drawing with chalk art; always a popular past time!

Other natural elements include birds, street tress, squirrels, and water. I love that there are art activities scattered throughout the book to go along with each item. There are pages with room for a sticker to mark certain things that the reader has seen, like a food cart, wall mural, and a fountain. The corresponding stickers are in the back of the book. There are also some thematic check lists.

Good Points

I especially appreciated some of the side notes on healthy duck snacks (NOT bread!), the pictorial dictionary of animal scat, and information about city clean up.

There are also stickers for a "Day of Discovery", including things like a person laughing, someone playing the guitar, birds, sunglasses, and flowers. Along with these pages is room for writing what one loves about the city, making this a great memory journal.

Don't miss the tiny pocket in the front of the book that includes a small Fresnel lens magnifying glass! I have to admit to being enthralled with the tiny pocket, and spent more time than I should have using the magnifying glass to look at items in the book! This would be a great book to give to a child who lives in a city, or who is visiting one on a vacation.