At the end of William's Winter Nap? (2017), the boy (William) settles down to sleep in the chair beside his bed, squeezed out by the weary woodland animals who begged for winter shelter. In this sequel, William wakes up and realizes, "It's spring!" Hurrying to clean his house and bake a cake before an old friend arrives, he attempts to waken the slumbering animals. One by one, Chipmunk, Porcupine, Groundhog, and Bear rouse themselves to help William with chores, while lazy Raccoon pretends to snooze. After Bluebird taps on the door, Raccoon finally rises, apologizing for his laziness and clearly hoping for cake. Ashman, a picture-book writer with the happy knack of making rhymed, rhythmic couplets sound completely natural, sets up a pattern within the story and uses a refrain to underscore it, while moving the narrative forward in a pleasing way. In the digitally enhanced, shaded-pencil illustrations, Groenink sets the scenes simply but beautifully, while giving each character a bit of personality. An appealing picture book for spring.

A young boy and his animal friends awaken from a long winter's nap and prepare to welcome a special guest.William looks out the window of his forest cabin to a dawning, blooming world. Calling to the hibernating animals who share his bed, he says, "Wake up! It's spring! / Today's the day— / a special guest is on the way." Only Chipmunk answers the call initially, and the two bake together until they realize the job is too big for just them. William returns to the bed, calling the other animals one by one to come assist in the cleaning and decorating. When "special guest" Bluebird finally arrives—and after sluggard Raccoon agrees to help Bluebird build its nest—they finally sit down to a spring picnic. The animals wake in a similar order to how they settled in during Ashman and Groenink's previous book, William's Winter Nap (2017). And as with that title, the countdown and the rhyming text with a repeating chorus make this an ideal read-aloud for young listeners. The mostly mono- and bisyllabic vocabulary lends a simple elegance to the tale. Earth tones keep the pencil-and-Photoshop illustrations warm and cozy, and additional feelings of familiarity arise from the drafting style, which is reminiscent of mid-20th-century illustration. Prominent pencil marks are grainy and natural, complementing the woodsy story setting. William has pale skin and straight, black hair.A classic-feeling, homey celebration of spring's beginning. (Picture book. 2-5)