Loyalty can't wait to host Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey for their new picture book, Somewhere in the Bayou! This event is free to attend and will be held digitally via Crowdcast. Click here to register for the event. You can also order a copy of the book from our website to be automatically added to the registration list, and there will be an option to snag the book during the event.

Simple, subtle, and drolly funny, the Pumphrey brothers’ newest picture book is a layered exploration of the foolishness of making assumptions and the virtue of curiosity.

When four swamp creatures looking to cross a river come upon a log that would allow for precisely that, they can’t believe their luck. But a questionable tail adjacent to that log gives them second thoughts. Opossum believes it’s a sneaky tail and that they must pass it quietly. Squirrel thinks it’s a scary tail that can be cowed by intimidation. Rabbit decides it’s a mean tail that deserves a taste of its own medicine. As the critters exhaust approaches one by one, Mouse, the smallest of the lot, observes their folly and adjusts accordingly. But is it the mouse or the tail that will defy expectations?

Pairing their iconic illustration style with a wry irreverence, the Pumphrey brothers have crafted a delightful tale that reminds us to think before we act.

Jarrett and Jerome’s first book, The Old Truck, was an Ezra Jack Keats Award Author Honor Book and was named a Best Book of the Year by Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, Publishers Weekly, and Horn Book Fanfare, among other honors. Their second book, The Old Boat, was called a “thought-provoking story of environmental change and the power humans have to stop it” by Kirkus Reviews (starred review).

Originally from Houston, Jarrett now lives in Austin, Texas, and Jerome in Clearwater, Florida.

Please note Loyalty has a zero tolerance policy for harassment or intimidation of any kind during this virtual event.

Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey for SOMEWHERE IN THE BAYOU