Play with Me

Tumbling, chasing, splashing in the mud, or helping with chores—just about any activity is fun for a little one. And all kinds of mommies and daddies know that playing helps their children grow healthy and strong.

Rambunctious rhymes and bold illustrations of young animals and children show the joys of play, every way, all day!

Children's Literature

Lively rhyming verse explores all the ways that animal families frolic and play. Kittens pounce and wrestle, puffins surf the waves, polar bears slip and slide on the ice, dolphins blow bubbles deep in the sea, elephants squirt each other with mud, kangaroos jump and twist, and monkeys swing from trees. What about human families? They stretch and yawn to begin a new day, build castles in the sand, bake together, and build a doghouse. Soft-hued watercolors capture all the fun, flight, and fancy of the animals as well as the warmth of the human family's sharing. Each animal group is identified within the illustration that will help small children learn new animals. The cadence of the rhymes makes this a perfect read aloud for the very young. An added "Play Tips" is aimed at parents and gives concrete advice for creative ways to extend a child's play. Reviewer: Beverley Fahey

MICHAEL ELSOHN ROSS is the award-winning author of more than forty books for children. For over thirty years he has worked as a naturalist in Yosemite National Park, where he has joyfully observed children and other young animals at play. He lives along the Merced River in El Portal, California.


JULIE DOWNING is an internationally published author and illustrator who has written and/ or illustrated over thirty books for children. She lives in San Francisco with her husband and children.