If You Go Walking

  • November 2025 Children’s Book Council “Hot off the Press” selection

Picture book ages 4–7 | 32 Pages | 978-1-77278-351-3 HC

“A heartfelt paean to proto-scientists and everything left in this world for them to discover.”—Kirkus Reviews

If You Go Walking is published by Pajama Press.

Buy If You Go Walking on Pajama Press’ website

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If you go walking,
You might collect berries,
Or pebbles, 
Or wildflowers.

I collect questions.

Time spent in the outdoors stirs a child’s curiosity. In If You Go Walking, a thoughtful thread of questions (How do seeds know not to grow until spring?) invites young readers to explore the world around them with wonder. In nature, questions are everywhere, and answers can be too, if you know the right places to look.

Author Erin Alladin invites young readers to think deeply in this lyrical nonfiction text, celebrating children’s curiosity about the world around them.

A young boy and his dog race joyfully through autumn leaves while his father and little sister follow more slowly. Text reads, I know most trees with leaves throw a party in the fall, turning them orange and gold and throwing them into the wind like confetti. Small boxes of nature facts dot the page.
A boy and his dog gaze at an early winter oak tree where some brown leaves still cling to the branches. Text reads, But oak trees hold tight to their copper-brown leaves, and I wonder if they find it hard to say goodbye to summer. Small text boxes dot the page with questions about trees and leaves.
A boy in a winter coat gazes up at three chickadees on a branch while his sister buries their dog in snow. Text reads, I know birds get round with fluffed-up feathers in the cold, just like me in my puffy jacket. I know all that fluff traps warm air around us and keeps us cozy. Small fact boxes about snow and insulation dot the page.
An author's note from Erin Alladin talks about how exciting the phrase "I don't know" can be and recommends ways kids can find answers to their questions by using observation, asking an expert, using reference books, and doing other research.

More Praise for If You Go Walking

“This book multitasks as both a charming read-aloud and an empowering jumping off point for real science for young thinkers.”—Youth Services Book Review 

“I love the way it encourages readers to ask questions based on what they observe and the illustrations on this one are an absolutely amazing.” —Picturebook Playdate IG

 “The collage illustration style is especially effective, and I loved how fabric was used for clothing and real feathers make the birds look delightfully fluffy!”—YA Books Central

“It’s a nice lyrical way of telling these stories…. and it’s loaded with lots of good STEM content”—Fuse 8, Betsy Bird

“Leaping visually across seasons from spring to the end of a snowy winter, it’s a thoughtful tribute to the power of observation.” —Publishers Weekly

“Illustrator Miki Sato has used a variety of different textures and materials so that a reader feels they are looking outside at what is truly happening in the real world.”—Puget Sound Council for Reviewing Children’s and Young Adult Literature