"There's a pond out back down the hill from our house... My best friend Carole and I like to play there every day, all year round."

This pond is too shallow and mucky for swimming. But in May frogs' eggs float like clear beads of jelly. In June, in the muckiest corner of the pond, rare wild lady's slippers bloom. By July the algae is thick and the damselflies buzz on the surface. And all through the year, two best friends, "pond buddies and scum chums forever," play on its banks, catching crawdaddies, making mud cookies, and, in January, skating across its frozen, sleeping expanse.

Drawn from author Kathryn Lasky's memories of many happy days, Pond Year captures the lasting pleasures of a favorite place and a favorite friend. And, drawn with a naturalist's eye for the beauty found in every living thing, Mike Bostock's illustrations reveal the richness of pond life through the seasons.

From the dust jacket