In Carroll’s touching debut, a 10-year-old boy recounts his favorite activities, from the toddler years to his current age, while thumbing through a memory book with his mother one night. His recollections are laid out in a scrapbook-like structure, punctuated by fun mini-titles and eye-catching graphics, with a backwards countdown that culminates in adorable baby antics. The activities run the gamut from family fun, like tent camping outside and shooting hoops, to more solitary moments of climbing trees (barefoot, of course) and splashing in a summer creek, all recalled with a warm air of nostalgia for sticky childhood memories, sure to spark warmhearted feelings in even the most grown-up of readers.

The premise is straightforward but dazzles in its true-to-life reconstruction of a child’s development, whether recounting the young boy’s first milestones as a baby (chewing on toes and “find[ing] my nose”), or admiring his martial arts moves at age five. Carroll pays tender homage to the sweet innocence of childhood, as the main character devours a cake mix when cooking with his grandmother, mans a lemonade stand with a pal, and imagines himself a flying superhero-in-costume. Particularly moving are his interactions with family throughout, as they laugh, discover new territory together, and emanate genuine affection for each other.

Jenny Slife’s brilliant illustrations burst with color and energy, painting the protagonist in varying shades of childhood antics as he rolls through sticky mud, deals with a slimy fish, and leapfrogs with a friend. The characters are as diverse as they are entertaining, vaulting across the pages in a thrilling smorgasbord of childhood fun that ends with a sweet reminder to his mother: “Of all these things I loved to do, what I loved first and most was you.” Young readers—and the adults who share story time—will treasure this collection of childhood charm.

Takeaway: Young boy and his mother warmly recount his favorite childhood memories.

Comparable Titles: Vera Brosgol’s Memory Jars, Jennifer Butenas’s A Moment in Time.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A