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What the Road Said
Which way do I go?
That is your choice to make,
said the Road.
But what if I go the wrong way?
The Road curved a little,
almost as if it was giving me a hug, and said,
Do not worry. Sometimes we go the wrong way on our
way to the right way.
It's okay to be afraid or to sometimes wander down the wrong path. Poet and activist Cleo Wade's encourages us to lead with kindness and curiosity, remembering that the most important thing we can do in life is to keep going.
That is your choice to make,
said the Road.
But what if I go the wrong way?
The Road curved a little,
almost as if it was giving me a hug, and said,
Do not worry. Sometimes we go the wrong way on our
way to the right way.
It's okay to be afraid or to sometimes wander down the wrong path. Poet and activist Cleo Wade's encourages us to lead with kindness and curiosity, remembering that the most important thing we can do in life is to keep going.
40 pages, Hardcover
First published March 23, 2021
16 people are currently reading
1055 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 214 reviews
March 11, 2023
I’m at The New Orleans Book Festival right now listening to Cleo Wade speak. Every word that comes out of her is stunning, a true poem.
“Before you say something, ask yourself, is it kind, is it valid, is it worth it.” I’ll be thinking about that for a long time.
This book is adorable, beautiful. I can’t wait to read it to my daughter.
Imagine Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken but for kids!
5 stars
“Before you say something, ask yourself, is it kind, is it valid, is it worth it.” I’ll be thinking about that for a long time.
This book is adorable, beautiful. I can’t wait to read it to my daughter.
Imagine Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken but for kids!
Everyone falls at some point, said the Road. / But I will always be there when you land.” Narrator: “What if the world around us is filled with hate?” Road: “Lead it to love.” Narrator: “What if I feel stuck?” Road: “Keep going”
5 stars
April 2, 2021
What an inspiring book for children. Loved every sentence in it. Great subject to make a book about. Found the art at times a little dissapointing.
May 9, 2021
نقاشیهاش خیلی قشنگ بودن بهنظرم
November 26, 2024
Going to start adding my favorite kid books, as my house is full of them and I really love them. I’m not sure why I wasn’t already doing this. After many I am left crying and laughing and feeling warm, like this one. Every time I read it to my kiddo we have a conversation. As he gets older the conversation because more full of questions, personal examples and understanding. I mean, that’s kind of cool as hell. Grateful to have been gifted this one.
May 8, 2021
If you love the poem THE ROAD NOT TAKEN by Robert Frost, you will love this beautiful book! In this book the road is a character who answers questions. Example: "What if I grow weary or get hurt?" "I will give you trees of all shapes and sizes to shelter you when you need to rest and heal", said the Road. This book is philosophical and the road champions all of us (the readers). The best lesson of all is to just keep on going!
August 9, 2021
I loved the audiobook so much!
The beginning music is so lovely, and there is some other serenity music along with the audiobook. I loved the message that the author wants us to take from this book. A gentle reminder for us. Life is hard, and along the road, we need to keep going no matter what.
An inspiring book for children and adults too. It keeps me calm, and listening to this audiobook at midnight is a good decision for me.
An easy five-stars from me!
The beginning music is so lovely, and there is some other serenity music along with the audiobook. I loved the message that the author wants us to take from this book. A gentle reminder for us. Life is hard, and along the road, we need to keep going no matter what.
An inspiring book for children and adults too. It keeps me calm, and listening to this audiobook at midnight is a good decision for me.
An easy five-stars from me!
June 7, 2021
A heartfelt rumination on life & the paths we take and journeys we go on with the personified road giving advice. The PERFECT graduation gift book or end of the school year read aloud. Who needs Oh, the Places You'll Go when you have this beautiful book to replace it with!
Read
April 21, 2021Loved it!
May 7, 2022
Cleo Wade reads the audiobook. Beautiful.
March 31, 2025
Wow, this children’s book is encouraging. The words remind of Jesus talking to me when I’m in doubt. It’s beautiful.
March 31, 2021
Sharon nailed it
April 20, 2023
Created with the intention of inspiring both children and adults, this book urges the reader to always "keep going, discovering the world along the way.
The watercolor and ink illustrations are wonderful and help to spread the message of wonder and adventure.
Still, even though it's advertised in the store as a great book for grads, I see it as, unfortunately, quite forgettable., a book to be read once and shelved, not to be read again and again.
The watercolor and ink illustrations are wonderful and help to spread the message of wonder and adventure.
Still, even though it's advertised in the store as a great book for grads, I see it as, unfortunately, quite forgettable., a book to be read once and shelved, not to be read again and again.
May 12, 2021
The analogy of life as a road is not a new one. In fact, it’s a bit cliché. However, Wade creates a conversation between traveller and road that would make a great graduation present for those who want an alternative to Dr. Seuss.
April 24, 2021
Perfect for the last day of school or for a graduate. Loved it! Thanks for the suggestion, Noor!
June 7, 2021
New end of the year favorite read aloud! I even teared up a little.
November 29, 2022
What the Road Said review:
What The Road Said is a beautiful story about life and the journeys we take throughout life. This book personifies our life path in such a sweet way, and it is really beautiful to read, both for children and adults. One of the major themes in this book was continuing on when you get knocked down. The main genre of this book is fantasy or contemporary fiction.
If I was going to read this book to children, I would use it to teach them moral ideals. Two ways that I could do this would be to ask children about a time when they felt knocked down, and I would follow up asking them to share how they got back up. This encourages children to apply the morals of the story to themselves, and helps them to gain a deeper understanding of the book. Another way to teach this book to children would be to have them ask their parents or guardians about a time that they struggled, and how they got back up. I think that having children hear stories from their own loved ones would help further their understanding of the story.
This book was a WOW book for me because of how much I could appreciate and learn from this book today. The story was so simple and so beautifully put, and it was a good reminder that life goes on, and that no matter what happens, there will always be a way to get back on your feet and keep going. This book was written for children, but was inspiring to me today.
A few of the literary devices used in this story were repetition, and personification. The author personified the “road of life” to a literal road that the main character could communicate with in a sweet way. She often repeated questions and actions, which helped solidify the meaning behind the story and the morals it was trying to teach. I would consider this book to be free of bias because there was no inaccurate stereotypes and no inappropriate or disrespectful language. There was not really any representation of other cultures, but that is because there is only one character in this entire story.
What The Road Said is a beautiful story about life and the journeys we take throughout life. This book personifies our life path in such a sweet way, and it is really beautiful to read, both for children and adults. One of the major themes in this book was continuing on when you get knocked down. The main genre of this book is fantasy or contemporary fiction.
If I was going to read this book to children, I would use it to teach them moral ideals. Two ways that I could do this would be to ask children about a time when they felt knocked down, and I would follow up asking them to share how they got back up. This encourages children to apply the morals of the story to themselves, and helps them to gain a deeper understanding of the book. Another way to teach this book to children would be to have them ask their parents or guardians about a time that they struggled, and how they got back up. I think that having children hear stories from their own loved ones would help further their understanding of the story.
This book was a WOW book for me because of how much I could appreciate and learn from this book today. The story was so simple and so beautifully put, and it was a good reminder that life goes on, and that no matter what happens, there will always be a way to get back on your feet and keep going. This book was written for children, but was inspiring to me today.
A few of the literary devices used in this story were repetition, and personification. The author personified the “road of life” to a literal road that the main character could communicate with in a sweet way. She often repeated questions and actions, which helped solidify the meaning behind the story and the morals it was trying to teach. I would consider this book to be free of bias because there was no inaccurate stereotypes and no inappropriate or disrespectful language. There was not really any representation of other cultures, but that is because there is only one character in this entire story.
December 1, 2022
WOW! What a phenomenal book. The themes I quickly identified were courage and growing up. These themes came with a message to keep going on along all of our own roads.
The primary genre of this book is fantasy.
This book taught me a great amount. One lesson I took was to keep pushing no matter how hard the road gets. Life is not fair and it is definitely not easy. We all face tragedies, trials, and tribulations. This book teaches not only just children, but all to keep going and not give up. Another lesson that children could learn from this book is to have courage and not be afraid of what is to come. To be ready to keep moving forward and trust that the road was made just for them.
This book was definitely a WOW book for me because the year 2022 has definitely been a challenging year for me. I have gone through a lot while I have been walking on “my road” and I have truly connected with this children’s book because of this. This book reminded me of the road blocks and hills we might face in life, but we must keep going.
The author’s writing craft was fantastic. I love the way the author created a question and answer writing technique for readers to follow along with. The author utilized this style to better go along with the title of the book itself on “what the road would say”.
This book was free of bias because it was only focused on the main character and his journey along the road. It was not stereotypical and also didn’t state a specific gender of the main character, due to the fact that the writing was done in first person.
The primary genre of this book is fantasy.
This book taught me a great amount. One lesson I took was to keep pushing no matter how hard the road gets. Life is not fair and it is definitely not easy. We all face tragedies, trials, and tribulations. This book teaches not only just children, but all to keep going and not give up. Another lesson that children could learn from this book is to have courage and not be afraid of what is to come. To be ready to keep moving forward and trust that the road was made just for them.
This book was definitely a WOW book for me because the year 2022 has definitely been a challenging year for me. I have gone through a lot while I have been walking on “my road” and I have truly connected with this children’s book because of this. This book reminded me of the road blocks and hills we might face in life, but we must keep going.
The author’s writing craft was fantastic. I love the way the author created a question and answer writing technique for readers to follow along with. The author utilized this style to better go along with the title of the book itself on “what the road would say”.
This book was free of bias because it was only focused on the main character and his journey along the road. It was not stereotypical and also didn’t state a specific gender of the main character, due to the fact that the writing was done in first person.
April 12, 2022
What an absolute treasure of a read aloud children’s book! Relatable to kids and adults alike. Where does life‘s journeys take you? Which road should you take, what happens if you fall down or make the wrong turn what will happen? This book answers all those questions and encourages readers of all ages to never give up, keep going, always chose kindness, make mistakes and learn from them. Life is a journey and every road is different along the way. This would make a terrific graduation gift.
October 23, 2021
A wonderful illustrated book for both children and adults, full of insight and encouragement for life.
5 stars
5 stars
December 31, 2021
The Road has seen a lot. It has a message for us all.
August 18, 2022
Literally the worst book that has ever been written. Trash. Garbage. I cried buckets.
February 21, 2023
What a great lesson for kids.... put this in their minds to teach them to get back up, keep going and you can accomplish a lot!
June 18, 2023
thought i should include this book that was gifted to me for my 21st by sweet James Hill. My heart grew three sizes this day.
April 2, 2024
life is worth living again.
July 29, 2025
An overall enjoyable children’s picture book on the nature of personal journeys, something young adult me has been thinking on for some time.
May 14, 2021
This book is amazing!!!! The illustrations are beautiful!! Great story for all to hear!!
April 28, 2024
Perfect Graduation Gift
What a great book for anyone starting a new journey! Get it signed by all your child’s teachers when they leave elementary school. It is great for all ages, though. It covers so many emotions when starting on a new road.
What a great book for anyone starting a new journey! Get it signed by all your child’s teachers when they leave elementary school. It is great for all ages, though. It covers so many emotions when starting on a new road.
March 27, 2025
Great message for everyone…young and old!
November 14, 2023
Truly an amazing tale of how we should not let our fears prevent us from living and trying new things! In this book, we follow a young girl, who like most people in this world, questions her place here. She ponders if there is more to be discovered and if there is a different path she can take when all of a sudden, on a day like any other, a road appears in front of her. Intrigued, she steps towards it and asks the road “where do you lead?” (naturally, as one does). The road then responds by telling her to be a leader and find out herself. To summarize, throughout her journey on this unfamiliar road, the young girl asks a flurry of questions and expresses her concerns to the road. She questions how she should start her journey, what she should do when she gets there, which direction she should take, what if she takes the wrong path, what if she falls, what if she changes, what is someone is unkind… Which are thoughts that many individuals often experience in life. With every question and concern of hers, the road reassures and tells her how it is okay to fail sometimes and be unsure of yourself – how we all as humans go through change and sometimes we make mistakes, however, at the end of the day all that matters is that we lead others with kindness and take a chance at being brave and trying things that scare us, which can ultimately be done by being a leader ourselves. The story then concludes with the road urging the young girl to keep going and how she can do anything she sets her mind to as she has made it this far. Wow, what remarkable messages this story has provided, which many children and even adults can take to heart! As briefly explored above, the major themes addressed in this book were mindfulness, worry/fears, resilience, and bravery. I do believe that there are so many more themes that can be pointed out, but I would say that these themes and messages were more so explored! To further elaborate, this story addresses the many worries and concerns that we as humans naturally have. A lot of these doubts and questions often prevent us from going out of our comfort zone or fully expressing ourselves. We question if we made the right decision, how we should begin or what should we do, if people may judge us or be unkind… which ultimately causes us to not branch out despite wanting to. We typically tend to stick to what we know, as the unfamiliar and unknown is quite scary, and I would say that this story did a wonderful job of expressing these concerns as it was done in a manner that young readers can relate to! With that said, Resilience and bravery is then shown with both the road’s encouragement and advice. The road shares how it is okay to make mistakes, to not know what we are doing, and or to unfortunately encounter people who are unkind, however, all that matters is that we try and keep going despite any bumps we may experience along the road. Life is uncertain and we may make mistakes and change, but these experiences allow us to learn and prosper! Lastly, the theme of mindfulness is shown with the road stating how while on our “road/s,” we must still treat or rather lead others with kindness, peace, and love. Even if others are not so nice, we should still be kind as we cannot control the actions of others, but we can ours. Overall, I just love all the messages and themes and how they were age-appropriately depicted in this story! The main genre of this book is fantasy. Through reading this book, I feel like I too learned a lot! For starters, I learned how important it is for us, as humans, to take leaps or do things that may seem scary or unfamiliar. We all have one life, and it is crucial for us to try new things and not let our fears or doubts get in the way of new experiences! Of course, life is not perfect, and we all will sometimes fail or make mistakes; however, we simply just have to keep on going and learn from them instead rather than allowing them to discourage us! It is better to fail trying than to have never tried in the first place. Lastly, I was greatly reminded of how we cannot control the actions or thoughts of others, only our own. So, it is important to treat other individuals with kindness and peace, even if they are not so kind to us as that speaks more for our character, not what they may say or think of us. This book was a WOW book for me because of the inspirational themes and messages! I feel like many children and even adults can learn a lot from this book as it greatly reminds us how life is a journey, and we should never give up if we encounter some bumps along the road. It encourages people of all ages to take chances and to learn from your mistakes rather than to allow them to set you back. I also loved the illustrations that accompanied the text as I feel like it greatly accentuated the story itself!
The first literary device I noticed was the use of rhetorical questions: “Have you ever wanted to go in a different direction?” and “Have you ever wondered if there was something more…Something there…Something just different?” which I feel was a great way to begin the story as it causes the reader to stop and think. The questions themselves were also quite relatable, further engaging the reader as they can connect their own personal feelings and thoughts in relation to these questions. There was also a lot of personification: “The road smiled,” “The road said,” and “the road curved a little, almost as if giving me a hug.” The author giving the road human traits gave more light to the story and further helped the reader connect to parts of the story as the road represents the paths, we take ourselves in real life. The road feels like another character in the story rather than an actual object, which was also relevant to the story and can help children follow along and understand. Lastly, there was some repetition with “What if I…” and “Keep going, keep going, keep going.” The repetition of “what if I” throughout the story highlighted all the concerns and doubts the protagonist had, which many of us reading have as well. It emphasizes a point – how we all are sometimes scared and let all these little doubts stop us from trying new things. Additionally, the repetition of “keep going” instills the message of never giving up and letting your fears/mistakes set you back. Another aspect I noticed was how the author differentiated the text between the road and the protagonist. When the road spoke, the text was in a standard font, however, when the girl spoke it was in a font that looked disheveled, which portrayed the girl’s distress and fears. I would consider this book to be an anti-bias book because many individuals can relate to the themes of this story and can take the messages shared to heart. There was no bias language or stereotypical depictions, just a young girl and a road. The story overall was simply a tale about learning to take chances, to never give up, and simply be kind to others. Overall, the story itself can reside or be relatable to children and readers of all backgrounds. It is a concept that many people struggle with personally, even as adults (is an inclusive topic).
The first literary device I noticed was the use of rhetorical questions: “Have you ever wanted to go in a different direction?” and “Have you ever wondered if there was something more…Something there…Something just different?” which I feel was a great way to begin the story as it causes the reader to stop and think. The questions themselves were also quite relatable, further engaging the reader as they can connect their own personal feelings and thoughts in relation to these questions. There was also a lot of personification: “The road smiled,” “The road said,” and “the road curved a little, almost as if giving me a hug.” The author giving the road human traits gave more light to the story and further helped the reader connect to parts of the story as the road represents the paths, we take ourselves in real life. The road feels like another character in the story rather than an actual object, which was also relevant to the story and can help children follow along and understand. Lastly, there was some repetition with “What if I…” and “Keep going, keep going, keep going.” The repetition of “what if I” throughout the story highlighted all the concerns and doubts the protagonist had, which many of us reading have as well. It emphasizes a point – how we all are sometimes scared and let all these little doubts stop us from trying new things. Additionally, the repetition of “keep going” instills the message of never giving up and letting your fears/mistakes set you back. Another aspect I noticed was how the author differentiated the text between the road and the protagonist. When the road spoke, the text was in a standard font, however, when the girl spoke it was in a font that looked disheveled, which portrayed the girl’s distress and fears. I would consider this book to be an anti-bias book because many individuals can relate to the themes of this story and can take the messages shared to heart. There was no bias language or stereotypical depictions, just a young girl and a road. The story overall was simply a tale about learning to take chances, to never give up, and simply be kind to others. Overall, the story itself can reside or be relatable to children and readers of all backgrounds. It is a concept that many people struggle with personally, even as adults (is an inclusive topic).
Displaying 1 - 30 of 214 reviews