I love the beautiful simplicity of this book. A young girl is taught to ride her bike by her dad (or her granddad). He teaches her the mechanics; encourages her; and teaches her the power of persistence. The ink and water color illustrations are pretty, but just a little too "wobbly." It's as though I'm looking at the illustrations through a glass filled with water (which is why I took off one star). I would want something more definitively illustrated for a read-a-loud, but it is a sweet book to read one-on-one. Perfect for a beginning reader a well.