Someplace, somewhere, there is a doctor’s or dentist’s office waiting for a copy of It’s Busy Down in the Woods Today. Wait, the mere thought of associating those offices with the book might put off the pre-K or kindergarten crowd. Instead, let’s say that It’s Busy Down in the Woods Today: Friends to Meet, Places to Explore and over 100 Things to Find is the rabbit hole, busy time, chill-out companion that young, manic minds need, even though they may not want it.
It’s Busy Down in the Woods Today is the literary cousin of Waldo. Instead of asking where he is or why a skinny beatnik kid is so hard to find, let’s draw a magical, woodsy scene. It’ll be inhabited by multiple dozens of anthropomorphic animals who are going about their day. Some of the pages are more lyrical. They’ll have a series of poems set against close-up illustrations. You’ll see the village’s inhabitants at the bakery, library, and hospital or participating in the town’s day of help.
The Brown Bear Wood book series probably has the same cast of animal characters in each of the books. It’s Busy Down in the Woods Today starts with readers being introduced to all of the people who work in the woodlands. Think of the top ten jobs a pre-k kid knows and they’re in there. We see Mama Deer and Papa Mouse who are the doctors, the squirrel who is the shop keeper and a couple of others.
Once you know who lives and does what in the area, their respective day can start. The rabbits are in their wren baking things. The foxes are outside brushing their teeth. Momma woodpecker has a bowl full of worms for her children. The snake is getting ready to exercise and the skunk has just been awakened by his alarm. Alongside this two-page overview of the mammoth tree that hosts all of the critters, there’s a list of things kids can look for in the illustration. It’s got just over 20 things those young ages can look for that range from very easy to those that even older readers will swear aren’t there.
The grand old oak is very easy to see, whereas the frog enjoying his daily workout will cause people to troll both pages until they find the tiny frog over in the left-hand corner. The next page is a more relaxing, poetic overview of what the bunnies are doing in the bakery. From the comforting poems to the soft, chilled out illustrations, anyone will be put at ease when they watch the family operate their shop. The baby bunnies are napping on the recipe books. A bear customer is munching on a cookie that it presumably paid for. One of the rabbits has slipped and has fallen headfirst into the batter. Momma rabbit is operating the oven with care as she removes the freshly baked bread. Even the pages that are designed to be less of a seek-and-find are still riddled with dozens of things to keep young eyes and hands busy.
As the animal’s day gets cranking they go on the move, head into town, visit the market, go to the playground and more. Each of these scenes is played out with great detail. It’s the kind of minute details that can make a kid trace their finger over the scenes in wonder. They’ll find one animal, but then look for others of its kind as they do whatever is unfolding in the scene. Parents might be reminded of Billy and his dotted line that followed him in The Family Circus to an extent.
It’s Busy Down in the Woods doesn’t have that same goal in mind. The list of things that kids can look for on the page spreads are just a starting point. Those crawlers through pre-k kids, actually most of the intended audience, won’t be able to read the words. The text is a suggestion. The illustrations in It’s Busy Down in the Woods are the bait, and they effortlessly do their job.
Those crawlers or toddlers aren’t the main audience for the book, but it still weaves its charm onto them. I’m waiting for our teen currently, in one of the endless, waiting routines that parents do when they have a teen that’s not driving yet. There’s a toddler in the room. I showed their parents the book. They read it to the child for a moment, then walked away to chat with an office worker. They did this because that’s the routine parents do when they have a toddler who can’t walk fluently yet.
During this six-minute time frame, the two-year old was satisfied with It’s Busy Down in the Woods. They thumbed through the pages, pointed to the animals, and made strange sounds that their parents could probably understand. The pages are durable and the book is well constructed.
There are glossy and foil elements to the book’s cover that give it a timeless, classic feel. It’s as if the book has been around since their parents were in the waiting room a generation earlier. At that time, just like it is now, they were either waiting for something. It could be an adult at the dentist, their otherwise dependable auto to be fixed or a different variable of life that forces them to take it easy, even if they don’t want to.
Brown Bear Wood, It’s Busy Down in the Woods Today: Friends to Meet, Places to Explore and over 100 Things to Find is by Rachel Piercey, with illustrations by Freya Hartas and is available on Magic Cat Publishing, an imprint of Abrams Books.
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