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when the world is puddle-wonderful

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Pub Date 14 Oct 2025 | Archive Date 30 Sep 2025
W. W. Norton & Company | Norton Young Readers

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Description

Vivid, joyful poetry and bright, whimsical artwork combine in a delightful picture book collection of E. E. Cummings’s verse that tracks the seasons of the year.

Welcome to a marvelous almanac of E. E. Cummings’s poetry, from the showers, puddles, and birdsong of spring to the beaches and sun of summer, Halloween, November sunsets, snowfalls, and little silent Christmas trees. Now published as the first-ever picture book collection of Cummings’s poems and imagined for contemporary readers with beloved artist Blanca Gómez’s sprightly and charming illustrations, when the world is puddle-wonderful bursts with joy and wonder at the world around us.


About Author:

E. E. Cummings (1894–1962) was among the most influential, widely read, and revered modernist poets. He was also a playwright, a painter, and a writer of prose. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he studied at Harvard University and, during World War I, served with an ambulance corps in France. He spent three months in a French detention camp and subsequently wrote The Enormous Room, a highly acclaimed criticism of World War I. After the war, Cummings returned to the States and published his first collection of poetry, Tulips & Chimneys, which was characterized by his innovative style: pushing the boundaries of language and form while discussing love, nature, and war with sensuousness and glee. He spent the rest of his life painting, writing poetry, and enjoying widespread popularity and success.

Blanca Gómez is a children’s book author and illustrator, most recently of Emma Straub’s Very Good Hats. She lives in Madrid, Spain.

Vivid, joyful poetry and bright, whimsical artwork combine in a delightful picture book collection of E. E. Cummings’s verse that tracks the seasons of the year.

Welcome to a marvelous almanac of E...


Available Editions

EDITION Hardcover
ISBN 9781324086871
PRICE US$18.99 (USD)
PAGES 32

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Average rating from 11 members


Featured Reviews

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This book is puddle-wonderful! E. E. Cummings is a master with wordplay, typesetting, and rediscovering the joy of childhood, and this newly illustrated collection of his poems reflects all of the nostalgia in the best ways. I was surprised by several poems that I must have read as a child and how vividly they still bring the experiences of Christmas, summer, and Halloween to life, just as they did when I first read them. I highly recommend this book for schools and libraries, and it would make a wonderful gift as well.

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when the world is puddle-wonderful is a charming collection of E. E. Cummings’s seasonal poems brought to life with whimsical illustrations by Blanca Gómez. From springtime puddles to winter snowfalls, this picture book celebrates the simple joys of nature and the magic in everyday moments. It’s a playful and poetic journey through the year that invites children to see the world with fresh eyes.

This book’s illustrations are wildly colorful, packed with playful details for little ones to discover as they move through each season. One standout scene paired with the poem "Porky & Porkie" gave off such a Where the Wild Things Are vibe, it instantly pulled me back to one of my own childhood favorites. The poems are lyrical and sweet, perfectly capturing the wonder of childhood, and this collection is sure to become a treasured favorite for the little people in your life.

Thank you to NetGalley and W .W. Norton & Co. for the advance copy of this adorable children’s book in exchange for an honest review.

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