Published by Two Hoots, an imprint of Pan Macmillan, 2016.

This book is a masterpiece and I love it. The jacket sparkles with gold foil – a hint of the treasure that lies within. It is an exquisitely illustrated book; each page more breathtaking than the last. The illustrations are rich with colour, texture, detail and humour.

There Is a Tribe of Kids is a celebration of the natural world. A young boy clambers up mountains, slides across frozen ice caps and dives under the ocean. He soars into the sky, weaves through the jungle and ambles along the seashore. On his adventures he encounters all sorts of animals from fireflies to penguins, elephants to clams. He plays alongside these creatures, mirroring their movements and copying their appearance. It is a story of discovery and exploration, awe and wonder. Child and nature exist in harmony together, neither threatening the other.

Lane Smith is also a wonderful wordsmith and with this book he rejoices in the richness and beauty of the English language. This is a book of collective nouns. Some are familiar, others are strangely alien: a smack of jellyfish, an unkindness of ravens, a crash of rhinos. All are evocative and there is a beauty and a poetry to his words. It is a joy to read aloud.

This is a book to treasure and delight in.

Rating: 💙💙💙💙💙

Suitable from birth.

We originally reviewed There Is a Tribe of Kids as Guardian family reviewers and we would like to thank Guardian Children’s Books for sending us a copy of the book.