Common Sense Media Review
By Regan McMahon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Artful glimpse of boy's walk in his neighborhood at dusk.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 3+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
WINDOWS starts with a brown-skinned boy putting on his red hoodie to take his little white dog for a walk in his city neighborhood at sunset. The unseen narrator notes that you can look out your window at that time of day "and see more little windows lit up like eyes in the dusk, blinking awake as the lights turn on inside: a neighborhood of paper lanterns." The boy and his dog roam their familiar streets, seeing night-roving animals -- a cat and a raccoon -- and lots of his diverse neighbors framed in their windows. "Some windows will have dinner, or TV. Others are empty and leave you to fill them up with stories." As the sky darkens, he makes his way back home and sees his mom in the living room window: "Someone you love is waving at you, and you can't wait to go in." Once inside, he and his mom cuddle up together to read a book.
Is It Any Good?
This unique, gentle, artful, poetic picture book tells the simple story of a boy walking his dog but makes a broader point about community and the safety and comfort of home. Referring to the boy as "you" is an interesting stylistic choice that helps draw readers into the spare, poetic observations.
With his red hoodie a nod to the children's classic The Snowy Day, illustrator E.B. Goodale uses ink, watercolor, and digital collage to create an inviting cityscape, changing colors as the light fades to night.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what the boy sees in his neighborhood in Windows. How is what he sees at sunset different from what he would see in the daytime?
How is his neighborhood like or different from yours? Take a walk where you live and see what stories are revealed in the windows -- from a polite distance!
What feeling do you get from this neighborhood? Does it seem nice? Safe? Friendly? What do you see in the art that makes you feel that way?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : E.B. Goodale
- Genre : Picture Book
- Topics : Animals , Family Stories ( Siblings )
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Candlewick
- Publication date : October 17, 2017
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 3 - 6
- Number of pages : 32
- Available on : Hardback
- Last updated : October 23, 2025
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