If you follow Deborah Underwood on Facebook, you know she's been photographing animals she finds in her outdoor rambles of late. That's Deborah taking her own advice! Some time ago, she wrote the picture book text OUTSIDE, which poetically underscores our powerful and enduring connection with nature, not so easily obscured by lives indoors. The book encourages children to notice that connection and celebrate it.

At last, the book has not only an editor (the divine Kate O'Sullivan at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, who shepherded THE QUIET BOOK and many other Deborah picture books to shelves), but now there is also an amazing illustrator: Cindy Derby, whom I have admired since my stint on the portfolio judging team at the SCBWI National Conference in Los Angeles a few years ago. I can't wait to see what she does with OUTSIDE!

Congratulations, Deborah!

—Erin