The social dynamic of inclusion and exclusion is the serious theme of a playful picture book told in a series of visual vignettes strung together with a handful of essential words. A boy kicks a beach ball into the water. “What if . . . ?” two seals begin playing with the ball and toss it back up onto beach. “And what if . . . ?” a third seal is on the beach. “Then what if . . . ?” one of the seals in the water heads to the sand and starts tossing the ball with the third seal. “But then …” there is one sad-faced seal left—and left out—in the water. “OR . . . ” marks a transition for the scenario to begin all over again, but this time the seal up on the sand is left out when the second seal takes the ball back into the water. “OR . . . ” the action plays out again, but this time it concludes with all three seals playing together. Laura Vaccaro Seeger’s bright, bold illustrations are rich with the colors of sea and sand and brim with both feeling and possibility in this inviting and illuminating story. (Ages 3–7)

MULTIPLE STORIES . . . MULTIPLE STORIES. A story about choices from the "Queen of the
Concept Book."—The Horn Book

WHAT IF a boy found a beach ball and kicked it into the ocean? WHAT IF two seals found it and began to play? WHAT IF a third seal appeared on the beach looking for a friend?

In this spare and deceptively simple book, Laura Vaccaro Seeger shows us the same story with three different outcomes, each highlighting the possibility in possibilities.Youngest children will enjoy this visit to the beach and the chance to guess what happens when different choices are made.

What If? is a 2011 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year. This title has Common Core connections.