If Your Best Pal Is Your Pooch

Everywhere with You
Written by Carlie Sorosiak & Illustrated by Devon Holzwarth
Age Level: 2-5 Years
Published May 24, 2022

Gradually preparing my husband for a future fur baby.

Reading this book for the first time, I was reminded why I love children’s literature. The storyline is incredibly simple, but everything else about it feels extravagant.

The book is about a girl and a dog who live next door to each other but are separated by a high fence that runs along the property line. They are bonded by a shared loneliness. Each night, they sit together on opposite sides of the fence and the little girl reads aloud from her favorite books, transporting them to new worlds where they can do anything and be anyone. It’s a moving story about friendship, belonging, and overcoming obstacles to achieve happiness.

“She pokes a finger through the rails,
and the dog wiggle-walks, tail swishing so fast,
Back and forth and back and forth and –”

The star of the book is the illustrations, which are extraordinary. They seem to be plucked right out of a child’s vivid imagination, and they explode with luscious colors and whimsical charm. Creative typeset enhances the already gorgeous pages by making the words visually dance across the page. The deliberately placed text makes the book read like poetry by subtly dictating a beautiful rhythm and inflection to the sentences. Just like our furry friends, there is so much to love.