When the Fog Rolls In

PreS-Gr 1–A young puffin is left behind by his flock and has to venture through the fog to find them. Along the way the fog gets thicker and thicker as he encounters crabs and a somewhat threatening walrus. Once the fog lifts, the puffin finds his flock on a flower-covered cliff overlooking the sea. A young boy and a female caretaker are seen getting binoculars with a puffin-covered rock in the middle of the sea visible outside their window, and they are on the rock with the puffin flock on the last page. Fong (A Spark in the Dark) combines lyrical prose with muted watercolor to evoke the feeling of being in a fog (both physically and metaphorically). The youngest listeners will relate to the puffin’s confusion as he searches for his group through the fog and young elementary children and their caregivers will be able to discuss the symbolism of the fog for loneliness, sadness, illness, etc.