By Sophie Blackall
Illustrated by Phoebe Wahl
Little, Brown, 2026
32 pages
978-0-316-53538-0
Ages 4-8
Class 203 is “in a braiding CRAZE,” which poses a problem for Noah (white). “Noah has short hair. All the ponies are taken. His shoes don’t have laces.” Intrepid Ms. Morena has an idea: She cuts up a whiteboard rag, and Noah gets to braiding. “Left over center. Right over center. Left over center.” At home, he needs more material, so his dad offers an old shirt and teaches Noah how to stitch the two braids together. The braiding craze changes and grows, and as Ms. Morena reads stories, the class braids with various fabrics brought from home: Joseph’s old baby blanket, a yellow sari from Meena’s grandmother, Sadie’s faded polka-dot curtains, and more. As more classmates add their stitches to the lengthening braid, “it’s much quicker with three” becomes “it’s much quicker with six,” and then “with ten.” Soon the braid stretches down the hallway, and Noah is the one with the idea. After a sewing session at their local library, the class has a “story rug” big enough to fit them all, and their teacher, too. Ultimately, the story rug is a lovely, tangible example of the creativity and sense of community found in this class of elementary schoolers. The narrative is accompanied by Wahl’s warm, colorful illustrations rich with detailed fabric patterns. (Ages 5-10)