Posted in picture books, Preschool Reads

I Am Jack: A Story of Imagination

 I Am Jack: A Story of Imagination, by Paige Duncan/Illustrated by Julia Moroko, (Oct. 2024, Front Porch Collective), $24.99, ISBN: 9798218537722

Ages 3-6

A little boy and his mom play outside together; as he dons different outfits, Jack’s mom wonders aloud what he is. He proudly proclaims, “I am Jack!” every time. The book’s structure is set in a question-and-answer format, with Mom guessing at Jack’s identity with each new costume: a dinosaur; an astronaut; a shark, or a monster truck? “I am Jack”. The costume changes are fun and creative: he sports a basket on his back when Mom asks if he is a “trash truck”; a construction worker when he wears a box on his head (with a drawing of a construction worker on the front). The box becomes airplane wings when Mom asks if he is a plane, and they use chalk to draw train tracks on the ground while he sits in a box with wheels as Mom asks if he is a train. It’s a fun and inventive story that Moroko’s colorful and playful illustration brings to life. The repetition of question-and-answer will inspire readers to chime in during a readaloud. I Am Jack is a fun story about a playful day between a child and his mother.