Beloved poet Mary Oliver’s life is lovingly related in this picture book biography. A quiet and observant child who was most comfortable outside, exploring nature, young Mary yearned for a way to express the peace and comfort she experienced on her wanderings. As a young woman, she was inspired to write to the sister of her favorite poet, the deceased Edna St. Vincent Millay, who offered Mary a job sorting through the poet’s papers. The opportunity helped Mary blossom; a budding poet herself, she began to share her words with the world. Her keen and profound observations made it easy for her to relate to a photographer she met, Molly Malone Cook, who became her lifelong romantic partner. Publishing a new book of poetry every one to two years, Mary eventually received a Pulitzer Prize. Known for her beautiful and accessible way with words, her poetry was also criticized for being pedestrian. Yet it was her childlike sense of wonder that inspired so many of her poems and warranted her appeal. Dreamy digital watercolor illustrations accompany the clear narrative.

ABA 2025 Best Book for Young Readers
CCBC Choices 2026

This lyrical picture book biography of beloved American poet Mary Oliver shows young readers ages 7 - 10 how her love of nature and sense of wonder inspired her art.

Young Mary Oliver was enthralled by nature. In the forest, she wondered about the birds and the lilies and the water in the stream—about all the things that cannot speak yet somehow spoke to Mary. She wondered, too, about poetry, about how words pieced together filled her with light and how some poems felt like they were written just for her. How could this be?

Author Erin Frankel shows how Mary Oliver held on to that sense of wonder from her childhood, channeling it into some of the most beloved poems of the past hundred years. Illustrator Jasu Hu’s lush nature scenes beautifully complement Frankel’s soulful writing about the creative process. Together text and art honor Mary Oliver and her astonishing poetry.