Ivy was Rebecca's very first picture book, and it strays far from the rules of picture book writing. Yet, the homemade look and awkward text placement are part of what make Ivy a charming, authentic, and heart-warming ode to our planet. 

 

Written and illustrated for grade-school-aged children, Ivy is the story of a girl’s struggle to fit in and her ensuing loss of identity that leads her back home. The story takes place in the context of a larger and less explicit one, that is, climate change and the give-and-take relationship between people and our environment. The story’s rhyming text and fantastical elements, depicted by flamboyant illustrations, demonstrate our boundless tie to nature as both a responsibility and a gift. Ivy encourages and promotes the intrinsic curiosity and love children have for natural phenomena, as well as reminds, re-inspires, and hopefully elicits the same in older readers who have lost touch with their roots.