Learn about the water cycle while following Ice Boy's journey when he decides to leave the ice cube tray to explore the wider world.

Ice Boy doesn't believe that "to be chosen was the best thing that could happen to an ice cube." He goes off in search of more, and takes a trip through the water cycle before returning home. ( )

Humorous story that teaches children about the rain cycle and different states of water. This is a story of the daring adventures into the unknown as Ice Boy decides he doesn't want to be "chosen" but instead explore the world. I had to read this one a few times to truly appreciate the story and what the story was trying to teach. This title is for an older audience that may be already familiar with the water cycle. ( )

Growing up in the freezer, Ice Boy is told by his parents that the highest purpose an ice cube can have is to be "chosen," perhaps for a drink, maybe even a cold compress. But he longs to explore the world instead, and sets out to the beach, where he slowly melts into the ocean. Soon he is experiencing all of the different states of water, from liquid to vapor, back to liquid and then into solid. Once again in ice form, he is reunited with his parents, and the three find themselves melting on the lawn. What will they do, his parents wonder? But for Ice Boy, it is all one big adventure...

I have enjoyed other David Ezra Stein titles - his Pouch! is a wonderful example of the reassurance tale - but somehow Ice Boy just didn't speak to me. I appreciated its message of self-worth, and learning to accept change in oneself, but the eponymous hero and his journey just didn't interest me that much. Maybe I have difficulty anthropomorphizing an ice cube? Whatever the case may be, there's nothing wrong here, and tastes vary, so others may still want to give this one a try, especially if they're Stein fans, but this one left me pretty indifferent. ( )