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About The Book

Celebrate the beauty of the natural world in this meditative picture book encouraging mindfulness, gratitude, and love for the environment—featuring illustrations painted on actual wood.

Can you hug a forest? Of course you can. First you hug the air: open your arms, lift up your chin, and breathe in all the way down to your toes. Then you hug a leaf and a flower and a trail and a stream and all the other wondrous natural elements that make up a forest. Take every chance to soak in your natural surroundings and be grateful for nature.

About The Author

Photo by Vaz Dando

Frances Gilbert is a children’s book editor and the author of the picture books Can You Hug a Forest?; Go, Girls, Go!; Too Much Slime!; and I Will Always Be Your Bunny. Follow her on Twitter at @GoGirlsGoBooks.

About The Illustrator

Photo courtesy of the author

Amy Hevron is an illustrator, graphic designer, and children’s book author. She is the illustrator of several children’s books including The Tide Pool Waits by Candace Fleming, Tree Hole Homes by Melissa Stewart, and Can You Hug a Forest? by Frances Gilbert, as well as her own Tiny Habitats series, Dust Bunny Wants a Friend, and The Longest Journey: An Arctic Tern’s Migration. Visit her at AmyHevron.com.

Product Details

Raves and Reviews

"A youngster deeply in touch with nature explains how to hug each part of a forest. The lulling, quiet text washes over readers, following a repetitive structure... that brings comfort and stability. Hevron’s cozy illustrations are painted directly on a wooden canvas, with wood grain peeking through delightfully in places. Plenty of opportunity for stillness and nature appreciation, wherever you may be."

– Kirkus Reviews, 3/1/23

"[A] sensorially focused encounter with the natural world."

– Publishers Weekly, 3/20/23

"[A] sensorially focused encounter with the natural world."

– Publishers Weekly, 3/20/23

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More books from this author: Frances Gilbert

More books from this illustrator: Amy Hevron