The author and illustrator of A Mountain Alphabet rejoin to create this picture book featuring West Coast scenery. Waking early in a wonderful wilderness world, a sister and brother drag their canoe into the water to explore the fresh, crisp morning. A moose, chickadees, Canada geese, squirrels, a heron, loons, a rabbit, and a grey owl are all visible in the first two spreads. The children fish, chop wood, cook, pick berries, swim, hike, and observe nature.

Margriet Ruurs, the author, uses descriptive language that complements the artwork. An introduction invites readers to search for animals in the book. The first-person narrative style is skillfully crafted to make it easy to imagine either the girl or the boy telling the story. A useful, fact-filled legend includes the names of the creatures in each painting, including hidden animals.

Each painting by Andrew Kiss is a thoughtful study of nature and camp life. One of the girl crouched low, with her head down, looking at a toad is breathtaking. But elsewhere some visual details seem unrealistic: the tent has no bottom and the children appear to have no problems hauling a heavy cedar-strip canoe into the water by themselves. In one picture, the boy is splashing the girl with icy, cold water but she isn’t reacting at all. The children’s faces are usually serious. The book could have been enhanced by a few more active and fun spreads. It’s too bad there isn’t more evidence of the joy of camping, but this book effectively, and artistically, shows the quiet, contemplative side of enjoying nature.