Song of the Open Road: Wherever You Go by Pat Zietlow Miller

WHEN IT'S TIME FOR A JOURNEY, TO LEARN AND EXPLORE,
ROADS GIVE CHANCES TO SEEK AND EXPLORE.

WANT ADVENTURE?
JUST OPEN THE DOOR.

A long-eared bunny sets forth on his bike, the lure of the open road keeping him moving, through autumn woods, past lakes and rivers, country cottages and picturesque villages, lovely cities, mountain peaks and snowy valleys. Along the way he acquires a traveling companion, a gray owl who sometimes flies overhead and sometimes rides in the bicycle basket.

ACROSS FLOWING RIVERS
PAST HARBORS AND BAYS,

WITH BREATHTAKING BRIDGES
DESIGNED TO AMAZE.

But every road is connected, connected to every other road and to every other place, and eventually the rabbit's roads become familiar and the way leads back home.

ROADS TAKE YOU ALL OVER THE PLANET, BUT THEN--
YOU ALWAYS CAN FOLLOW THEM HOME AGAIN.

Remember when it first hit you that everyone you know is connected, that the road outside your door joins other roads that finally lead to that person's front door? That is the joy of Pat Zietlow Miller's Wherever You Go (Little, Brown and Company, 2015). It's a simple idea, but a profound one, made amazing by the evocative and picturesque artwork of Eliza Wheeler. All seasons and all landscapes and cityscapes have their moment in those illustrations, the intrepid travelers stowing the bike on the back of a bus, rolling it onto a ferry, and pedaling it past skyscrapers, castles and pastures. With starred reviews for this book all around, Kirkus Reviews adds theirs, saying, "Children, thanks to captivating artwork and rhyme, will want nothing more than to ride his handlebars, bouncing and merry."

Pat Zietlow Miller is also the author of the delightfully poignant Sophie's Squash (see review here).