Common Sense Media Review
By Stephanie Morgan
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Gorgeous illustrations celebrate math, nature, and friends.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
LEO + LEA is a beautiful friendship story, inspired by the Fibonacci sequence and cleverly constructed using its mathematical pattern. It celebrates our differences, as well as how math connects us to one another. Young readers will love counting the number of words per page and discovering how they echo the Fibonacci sequence, a mathematical series in which each number is the sum of the previous two: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, and so on to infinity. Even the color scheme in the striking illustrations follows a mathematical progression, bringing an underlying order and tranquility to the story.
Is It Any Good?
In this unique book, author Monica Wesolowska and illustrator Kenard Pak use lyrical prose and dazzling art to teach readers about the magic of math. Leo + Lea is a stunningly original picture book that both children and adults will marvel over again and again. There are so many intriguing things packed into so few words here, from the soothing rhythm of the text to the repeating patterns hidden throughout, as well as the book's gentle tone and inclusive theme. Add in the frame-worthy artwork, and you'll want to gift it to every preschooler in your life.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the unique way that Leo + Lea teaches the Fibonacci sequence. Where did you notice it while reading? Check out the last page of the book where notes from both the author and the illustrator will tell you more.
Both Leo and Lea display a lot of curiosity about the natural world around them. Why is that a good trait to have?
How would you describe the colors used in this book? What mood do you think the illustrator was trying to create? How did the middle of the book (which had the most contrasting colors) make you feel compared with the beginning and end (which had the least)?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Kenard Pak
- Genre : Picture Book
- Topics : Friendship , Numbers and Letters
- Character Strengths : Curiosity
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Scholastic Press
- Publication date : August 2, 2022
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 4 - 8
- Number of pages : 40
- Available on : Nook, Hardback, Kindle
- Award : Common Sense Selection
- Last updated : September 29, 2025
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