I KNOW HERE by Laurel Croza

I am not sure how I found out about I KNOW HERE by Laurel Croza--somewhere online via Twitter or blogs or Amazon recommendations. It was a quick link and I immediately knew I had to have this book. I ordered it right away and I am so happy that I did! I think this is going to become one of those anchor books for so many things. First and foremost, this is a powerful story of moving and leaving a place that you love--finding ways to hold onto it after you are gone. If I were in the classroom, it would definitely be one I'd use early in the school year to invite kids to try different types of writing. A great writing mentor text. But it can also start conversations about setting or a sense of place in a story. And the illustrations are unique and stunning.

On the first page of the book, the little girl in the story finds out that she is moving away from the home that she knows to go to another place. But, "This is where I live. I don't know Toronto. I know here." She then goes on to describe all that she knows about the place she loves--the road, the forest, the trailers, the hill, the truck and more. She then asks, "Have people in Toronto seen what I've seen?" and she thinks about the things that she's seen--a moose standing still in water, a five seater airplane swooping low overhead and more.

Finding a way to keep this place that she loves with her when she moves is important to her and she finds a way to do it.

This book reminds a bit of Byrd Baylor's writing, even though the format is much different. The focus, language, and repetition in this book make it stand out as one worth having. So happy I have it. I absolutely love it!