Cute picture book with no words about a dad and son getting up early and going on a hike together. They do lots of adventuring on their hike and at the end, before turning back around, they plant a tree together. Great book for exploring the value in nature and in spending time with loved ones, making memories. ( )

I love that this was a wordless picture book! The pictures told a beautiful story about a dad and his child having an outdoor hiking adventure. The colors were beautiful and the bonding of the characters was even more beautiful. ( )

A wordless picture book tribute to a father and son and the great outdoors! Truly....it's great. It made me want to get out and explore the world around me. It made me think of hiking trips from this summer ( )

A boy and his father head out to the forest for a hike in this mostly wordless picture-book from author/illustrator Pete Oswald. Their outdoor adventure takes them past an unexpected snowfield, across a log bridge, by a waterfall, and up a mountain. Eventually they reach their goal: the spot where they will plant a tree, together...

I have encountered Oswald's artwork before, in Jory John's The Bad Seed and its sequels, but Hike is the the first of his own books that I have read. I found it engaging, although perhaps not as emotionally resonant as the friend who recommended it to me. The digital artwork is lovely - more than enough to carry the story here - and the reader will enjoy following along as this loving father-son duo head out into the wonder of nature. For my own part, I appreciated some of the little visual details in the artwork - the creatures the pair encounter or pass, such as a fox, or some bunnies - and thought it was interesting that the father and son here look to be African-American. Studies have shown that far fewer members of the African-American community take advantage of our national and state parks, than the park services would like, and I found myself wondering, as I perused this book, whether childhood narratives such as this might help to make a positive change to this situation, by encouraging young people to see the outdoors as a desirable destination.

In any case, all in all I found this an entertaining, heartwarming book, and I enjoyed both the depiction of the outdoors, and the loving bond between father and son. I did find it a little funny that the ultimate end goal of this hike - planting a tree - is something that is generally forbidden in national parks and forests (something mentioned in a brief note on the colophon, at the end of the book), but with the caveat that adults be aware of this, and point it out to children during their reading, I would recommend this one to picture-book audiences who enjoy (mostly) wordless narratives, or stories about outdoor adventures. ( )

Hike follows the story of a father and son spending the day together on a wilderness hike. The book begins with the father waking up his son to go on a fun hiking adventure. They get dressed, eat breakfast and pack for their adventure. The book continues as they continue on their journey. Each page captures their wilderness adventure including animals and spectacular views. This wordless picture book was easy to follow. The illustrations pull the reader into the story. The color scheme of this book also resembles the wilderness. This book is full of emotion and illustrates teamwork. Furthermore, the boy overcomes obstacles. Each time that I read the book, I find something that I had not previously noticed. The boy and father in this book also demonstrate the responsible way to hike by using safety gear. This charming story would be a great read for 4-8 year olds. ( )