Katie's family has a new house by the pond. Her parents say not to play at the pond without them, which is fine by Katie - until her new best friend thinks their rule is stupid.
Morality
The story revolves around a girl disobeying her parents, and then learning why (other than that they told her so) she shouldn’t have. Its morality is good, if "morality" translates to "what point the book drives home most clearly" rather than to "whether the characters in the book always behave."
Spiritual Content
Katie says she “asked God to forgive her.” Katie’s family prays over breakfast.
Violence
In a flashback, a boy nearly drowns. Dogs chase a bird and children poke at frogs with sticks in the illustrations.
Drug and Alcohol Content
None.
Sexual Content
None, inside the book. The back cover mentions that the authors were inspired by research indicating that "children who have a loving relationship with their parents and who in early life understand their rules are more likely to obey God's moral restrictions in their teens," with specific reference to dealing Biblically with sexuality.
Crude or Profane Language or Content
None.
Conclusion
This is a fairly sweet story about how “rules make sense — when you understand them.” The illustrations are gorgeous: full-color, full-page, and realistic, and they serve the text well.
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