Not a Walk

A grandfather shows his granddaughter how rewarding a day outside can be in this endearing picture book based on a Yiddish expression about taking things one step at a time.

Eleanor Finklestein refuses to go on a walk with her zayde: Walks have sore feet and are icky and sticky. Walks make her hungry. "Hungry?" says Zayde. "Let's go pick apples from the tree at the end of the driveway!" She agrees because that would not be a walk. And then she agrees to go a bit farther to pet a neighbor's dog. And then to the pond on a toad hunt. And before she knows it, Eleanor's "not a walk" has turned into quite the schlep, and Zayde is tired, icky-sticky, and hungry. Now he needs his granddaughter to inspire him, little by little, to walk back home.

This sweetly humorous story is an excellent reminder that sometimes life is just more manageable in bite-sized pieces (and with someone you love).