The Book:
Author/Illustrator: Antoinette Portis
Publication Info.: Neal Porter Books, 2019
Ages/Grades: ages 4 to 8
Category: lively voice, apostrophe, expository
Overview (from the publisher):
“Hey, water! I know you! You’re all around.
Join a young girl as she explores her surroundings and sees that water is everywhere. But water doesn’t always look the same, it doesn’t always feel the same, and it shows up in lots of different shapes. Water can be a lake, it can be steam, it can be a tear, or it can even be a snowman.
As the girl discovers water in nature, in weather, in her home, and even inside her own body, water comes to life, and kids will find excitement and joy in water and its many forms. ”
What’s noteworthy for authors and educators:
Nonfiction author Melissa Stewart talks about “voice choice” in nonfiction. Want to see what a difference lively vs. lyrical voice can make? Read Antoinette Portis’s lively-voiced expository book, HEY, WATER! alongside Miranda Paul’s lyrical, circular narrative WATER IS WATER. Two very different books about the water cycle.
Additional Resources:
- Antoinette Portis tells the story of how HEY, WATER! came to be.
Kirsten W. Larson 