Poetry Friday -- Sleep

In Praise of My Bed

by Meredith Holmes

At last I can be with you!
The grinding hours
since I left your side!
The labor of being fully human,
working my opposable thumb,
talking, and walking upright.

(the rest of the poem is here)

As you can see from the picture, even those who don't have opposable thumbs and walk upright love the embrace of the bed.

It's been an exhausting week. At some point yesterday when it was feeling like the endless week from you-know-where, I actually thought it was Wednesday. Time passed in an amazing rush when my students corrected me and said, "No, tomorrow is Friday."

How time can feel slow or fast and yet pass by at the same measured rate has always fascinated me. Years for a little kid are a gigantic fraction of their total life, and so years are huge. The older we get, the smaller the fraction of our life for a year, and the faster time slips by. Or so it seems.

And the time we spend asleep seems to be lost, but sleep is what makes awakeness even possible. There's a definite Zen trapped in that conundrum...but don't lose any sleep over it! And don't waste any valuable awake time thinking too hard about it!

How about you spend some time perusing the Poetry Friday round up? David Elzey is hosting this week  at FOMAGRAMS. (I'll be visiting the round up tomorrow morning...after I sleep in!!)

Stuck

Stuck
by Oliver Jeffers
Philomel Books, on shelves Nov. 10, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher

The blurb for this book on Oliver Jeffers' website reads:

"A tale of trying to solve a problem by throwing things at it."

Floyd's kite is stuck in a tree, so he throws his shoe at it to get it down. His shoe gets stuck. Then he throws his other shoe and it gets stuck, too.

The sequence of the rest of the things Floyd throws at his problem starts off reasonable and veers decidedly to the ridiculous when he throws the kitchen sink, an orangutan, an ocean liner, the house across the street, and a whale...among other things. (Isn't that the way it goes, when you start throwing things at a problem?)

I can't really tell you about the end without taking all the fun of it away from you, but I will tell you that you're likely to have hope for Floyd's problem-solving ability, which will immediately be dashed, and yet, against all odds, there will be success...although you'll want to wring Floyd's neck in the end.

Kids will love this book. For them, it's a funny story of unintended consequences.

Adults will consider sending this book to their elected officials. Except for the fact that doing so would seem an awful lot like throwing a shoe...

Die Pflicht ruft.

We have a Living Language German phrase calendar sitting on our kitchen table. Every now and then it "speaks" to us -- it gives us the German equivalent for what is happening in our lives. Yesterday, before I spent all day with my grade level doing a data dig and curriculum mapping work, the calendar told me, "Die Pflicht ruft." (Duty calls.)

The Gapingvoid cartoon (by Hugh MacLeod) that is delivered to my email inbox every day often does the same thing. Yesterday, along with "Die Pflicht ruft," I was reminded that what I'm trying to do MATTERS.

*   *   *   *  

Edited to add (because I wrote this post last night and we never peek ahead at the calendar):

Sie ist sehr Fleißig.
She's very diligent.

Thanks, Living Language. I guess you've noticed how many hours I spend at the kitchen table working...

iPad Apps in the Library

We added four iPads to the library this year. They are not for circulation but will be used in the library. We also have 2 new iPods. As we move more of the building technology to classrooms, our library will be a place where we hope students can choose tools that make sense for their purpose.  In terms of technology, we'll have 15 laptops, 4 iPads, 2 iPod touches, 2 Nooks, 5 Kindles and a Smartboard.

I want the iPads to be tools for learning so we made sure not to put any games on these. I believe games are definitely tools for learning--we have lots of games in the library. However, since we are limited in the number of mobile devices we have, I want to give kids more possibilities for their use.  In surveys we've done with our students, playing games is something they already do quite often at home on computers and mobile devices. So, in the library, I want to show them what else is possible in terms of production/creativity/reading. So, we are starting the year with the following apps on our iPads:

Our students are familiar with Pages, Keynote and iMovie so we've added those to the ipads.  We will most likely add Comic Life as well.

As we work toward helping kids read with depth, I thought Flipboard would be a good tool for the library. Flipboard is a reader that allows you to follow sites and blogs of your choice. I will load the websites that kids read often--Wonderopolis, DogoNews, etc. so that kids can enhance their reading experiences with the iPad.

Last week, students explored Screenchomp. This is a great screencasting tool. In just a few minutes, students learned to share their learning, their drawing, their thinking and their stories with this tool. My hope is that screencasting becomes a way for them to share their learning and Screenchomp is  a great iPad Screencasting tool.

Dragon Dictation changes speech into text.  This will be a good tool for lots of things that kids do.

Talking Tom is a fun app that our younger kids will enjoy. Reading to Tom will allow students to hear their pacing, expression, etc.

I am focusing on more collaboration tools and Popplet is a great one for the iPad.  I'll introduce this one to students within the next few weeks.

We added a few draw tools such as Doodlebuddy and a few other draw tools on each iPad.

As we begin to explore ways to use QR codes, we added QR Reader.

A few social bookmarking sites we included were Evernote and Diigo.

We also put 4-5 iBooks on each iPad.  I want students to experience the best ebooks as readers. I also want them to begin to look at these as mentors--what is possible in their own creations later down the road.  Some books we purchased were:

Timbuktu Magazine is a new magazine for kids that looks promising.

Fantastic Books of Morris Lessmore is one of my favorite iPad books. Others we added were Cozmo's Day Off, and The Three Little Pigs Pop Up are three favorites so far.

This is where we'll start with the iPads.  I already have students using the apps they know and exploring others. Will be interesting to see what happen once the newness of the tool wears off.

Annotating Digital Text

I want my students to be able to track and record their thinking while they read.  Annotating text has helped so many students understand text more deeply. I work with students in grades 4 and 5 to use various tools such as highlighters, pencils, stickynotes, etc. to support their understanding of what they read.

I have loved the annotation tools I've used in my own reading using Diigo and Evernote. They allow me to do the same things I do on paper, digitally. I want my students to have experience using tools on the computer to highlight and take notes with non-paper text.  To get started on this, I decided to use the Preview tool and PDFs with students this week.  I took a web article with visuals and all and turned it into a PDF and will put one on each student's desktop.  Then I'll let them see how annotation tools work in Preview. I want them to learn the skills for annotating text and then I know those skills will transfer to more web-based reading and social bookmarking tools. I have to explore the educator accounts that Diigo and Evernote provide to determine which will best meet our needs.

After just a few conversations, I can see this helping students in their reading of online text. Often this text is overwhelming to them and these tools will help them to do what they know to do for understanding. My husband was nice enough to make a screencast of these tools for me. You can see it on his blog. Really, the preview annotation tools took me about 5 minutes to learn. I am confident that after a few minutes of exploration, these tools will be hugely helpful for my students as readers.

Poetry Friday -- Details

The Devil's NOT In The Details

The details are holy.
Wholly
life-affirming,
life-saving,
attitude-adjusting.

How can you not be recharged by
constellations marching
sun glinting
blue skies blazing
trees changing
hawks soaring.

The details are holy.


©Mary Lee Hahn, 2011


It's so easy to get bogged down in the big stuff and forget to notice all the small things that can give us another way to look at the world.

I can always depend on the world to show me peace and beauty, right when I need it the most.


Mary Ann has the Poetry Friday round up at Great Kid Books this week.

Love, Mouserella by David Ezra Stein

LOVE, MOUSERELLA is a fun picture book of a letter from a little mouse to her grandmother. Mouserella's grandmother came to visit but left a few days ago. And Mouserella misses her so she decides to write her a letter. The letter is filled with happenings in Mouserella's life.  From going to the zoo, to working on her posture, Mouseralla fills her grandmother in on all that is happening.

The book opens vertically rather than horizontally which makes for some fun. Mouserella's letter continues from one page to the next. Each page of sharing is accompanied by photos and drawings.  There is evidence of some editing as Mouserella changes the spelling of a word here and there. The letter is babbly--as it would be from a young child, telling all that she can to her grandmother.

I think kids will love this book and will relate to all that Mouserella shares.  I also think that this could serve as a model for young writers.  This isn't your typical correct-letter-format example, but it is real life.  I think it can be used to talk to young kids about expanding their thinking, working to connect text and visuals, adding information, etc.  Mouserella does a great job of telling lots, that's for sure!

2 More Alphabet Books

I love the variety of ABC books being published these days.  One of my new favorites is AN ANNOYING ABC by Barbara Bottner.  This abc book tells a sequential story about the children in one classroom--they look to be young children.  On the end and title pages, the children are walking to school in lots of different moods. Some look happy. Some look tired. Others look a bit grumpy but we meet the children first before the story begins.  The story begins like this, "It was a quiet morning until....Adelaide annoyed Bailey. The first letters of each child's name are highlighted throughout and the alliteration used on each page reminds us that this is an abc book. But the story is about a class who is just getting on each other's nerves. It is a reminder of how out of hand things can get when we let the cycle of crankiness continue!  Anyone who has ever spent anytime in a classroom will know exactly how this can happen. But with the help of an understanding teacher, all is turned around for a much better afternoon. This is a fun story and the illustrations are worth spending lots of time with.  I am not sure this is one kids will read on their own--the names and verbs are tricky. But it is definitely one kids of all ages will enjoy and one I can see some classrooms creating their own version of this abc book with their own names.

The other alphabet book I purchased was AN EDIBLE ALPHABET:  26 REASONS TO LOVE THE FARM by Carol Watterson. I have not had the chance to read this one from cover to cover--it is packed with information. But this is one that would make a great read aloud for young children. Each page is packed with information connected to one letter of the alphabet.  From how often asparagus needs to be planted to root vegetables, to the role of hummingbirds, this book gives students a very detailed look at a farm. There seem to be several opportunities for children to enter the book. Some may look for the illustration that matches the letter. Others may dig in deeper to read more about the farm.  If a teacher were to read this aloud, it would probably take several days to do so. At first glance, it looks like a quick read but each page is filled with information and readers will want to take it all in. This one would also serve as a great mentor text for students writing literary nonfiction.

September Mosaic

September...

It starts with the Arts Festival, jumps into school with both feet, and ends with the Casting for Recovery retreat.

Beehive Books, a very nice independent bookstore in Delaware, OH was bonus this month.

However, the rain with which the month ended has not yet gone away...

It's October, and that means...

It's CYBILS time!!

This is the SIXTH year for the CYBILS, and they keep getting better. There are new eligibility rules, and a new category for nominations: book apps.

When CYBILS were born, I was a first-round judge in the Graphic Novels category. This year, I'm a second-round judge in Poetry.

Here's the nomination form (make sure you read those eligibility rules). More than fifteen poetry books have already been nominated! Is your favorite on the list yet? How about your favorites in all of the other categories?!?

Looking Forward to These Books

I have been having lots of conversations with students about thinking ahead as readers.  My stack of to-be-read titles never ends. And that is a good thing.  As I think head to my fall reading, I am going to try to make some more time for my personal and professional reading.  These are the books I am anxious to read.

I always learn so much from Kelly Gallagher.  His teaching and writing have had a huge impact o my teaching life. I am excited about his upcoming book Write Like This.  I have done a pretty good preview of the book on Stenhouse's site but I want to wait until I have a "real" copy to read it cover to cover.



I did a podcast interview with Kelly for Choice Literacy a while ago where he talks a bit more about mentor texts.

I came across the book Just My Type: A Book About Fonts by Simon Garfield and ordered it right away. I am pretty sure my oldest daughter will "borrow" it from me when I finish.



I feel like I haven't taught math in a long time. For the last 4 years of my professional life, I have been in the library and for the two years prior to that, I taught Literacy 1/2 day and coached literacy 1/2 day. So I was excited to see this book--Math Exchanges by Kassia Omohundro Wedekind one that will help me see the possibilities for math classrooms.  Love the connections she makes to workshop.


Another professional book I am anxious to read is The Ten Things Every Writer Needs to Know by Jeff Anderson.  I heard Jeff speak about this book at the All Write Summer institute and I have been waiting to pick this one up since then!


I had the opportunity to hear Rae Carson at Cover to Cover last week. She is the author of the brand new YA novel, Girl of Fire and Thorns.  My 12 year old insisted on reading the book first and devoured it (said she maybe liked it better than The Hunger Games and Gone!). It is now my turn to read the book and I can't wait.


Another book that caught my eye is The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka. I'm not sure where I first heard about the book but it looks like one I'd enjoy so I've added it to my list.  A review in the New York Times was posted about a month ago.

Pumpkin; Autumn.

Autumn
by Linda Pastan

I want to mention
summer ending
without meaning the death
of somebody loved

or even the death
of the trees.
Today in the market
I heard a mother say

Look at the pumpkins,
it's finally autumn!
And the child didn't think
of the death of her mother

which is due before her own
but tasted the sound
of the words on her clumsy tongue:
pumpkin; autumn.

Let the eye enlarge
with all it beholds.
I want to celebrate
color, how one red leaf

flickers like a match
held to a dry branch,
and the whole world goes up
in orange and gold.

Sara Lewis Holmes has the Poetry Friday round up today.

The Wisdom of Aldo Zelnick

Dumbstruck
by Karla Oceanak
illustrated by Kendra Spanjer
Bailiwick Press, 2011
Review copy provided by the publisher









There's wisdom to be found in children's books. Here's a segment from the new Aldo Zelnick book:

Goosy (Aldo's artsy grandma) walked me (Aldo) over to a window in her studio. She flung it open, and we peered over the sill, onto the ground below. There, behind a big bush, lay a mashed-up pile of paper, canvas, pottery, and other atrsy stuff. 

"I listen to my gut," she said. "If it tells me, 'This piece doesn't make you happy,' I just throw it away and start over." 

"But why throw it out the window?" 

"Because it fels good to throw something out a window once in a while, don't you think?" 

"But you put so much work into your art!" 

"Of course. Except I don't think of it as work. Life is mostly in the doing, anyway, not in the having. Besides, not everything we do in life deserves to be on display, Aldo."

The Aldo Zelnick books keep getting better and better. In this volume, Aldo has to deal with starting fifth grade, having a crush on his new art teacher, figuring out what to create for the art contest, learning to communicate with a new friend who is deaf, and being Nick Bottom (wearing a donkey head) in his class' performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

FRUIT CAKE--A FRUIT-FILLED PLAY ON WORDS by Roger Priddy

I bought far too many books at Cover to Cover last week. One of my favorite new finds was FRUIT CAKE. Sally showed it to me and I knew I had to add it to my collection of books on words and word play.

This book is a lift-the-flap type book. Each page gives the reader some new thing to do--lift the flap, pull the tab, etc.  And each page gives the reader a new way to think about words.

Each page consists of one word-usually a fruit. Then, the reader manipulates both the picture and the word to discover a fun word surprise.  For example, when you pull the BANANA tab, it splits the banana, turning it into a Banana Split.  There are so many great word surprises in this one--each page is fun to discover.  The book introduces some popular nicknames (The Big Apple) as well as meanings of more unique words like "limelight".  The large colorful photos and great fonts add to the wonderful-ness of this book.

The last page of the book lists the words and their meanings.

A truly fun celebration of words!

A Great Time of Year for New Book Releases!!!

Several great new books are being released this week and next. This year, I have been getting some review copies and ARCs or I've heard about books long in advance of when they are being released. To keep track of when must-have books are available for purchase, I started a calendar of book release dates. I must say, it is the best idea I've had in years! September/October are great months of the year for book releases. An expensive time of year for readers, but well worth it!  Below are a few of the books I am excited about that are available in the next few week or two.  Some of the books I had the opportunity to read in advance--others are those I just can't wait to see! A great time for book shopping!

I am so excited that there are going to be a total of 15 books about Babymouse.  I am a huge Babymouse fan and so are many of my students. No matter how many copies I have in the library, it never seems like quite enough. I have so many readers who cannot get enough of this great character. So many who are anticipating this new book.  BABYMOUSE #15: A VERY BABYMOUSE CHRISTMAS is due out Tuesday. Can't wait!

On the same day, SQUISH #2 will also be released. If you have not met Squish--another character by Jennifer and Matthew Holm, you'll want to do that as soon as possible. A great new series by this great team.

I have the same feelings about the upcoming book HAPPY PIG DAY! I mean, who can ever have enough books about Elephant and Piggie?  I am sure this new one by Mo Willems will be a huge hit with everyone.  Can't wait to read it!

I was able to read several middle grade novels earlier than their release date. Many of my very favorites are coming out this week and next. I can't wait to share them with students.

I absolutely love fairy tale novels. I love retellings of traditional tales and I love new stories. Jessica Day George is one of my favorite fairy tale authors and I read PRINCESS OF THE MIDNIGHT BALL this summer. and I was excited to get an advanced copy of TUESDAYS AT THE CASTLE. The main character, Celie, is great independent girl. And the castle is great fun--every Tuesday, it seems to change just a bit. It grows rooms, changes hallways, etc.  I love the whole concept of this castle. And the story inside the castle is one that kept me hooked. A great story!

BREADCRUMBS by Anne Ursu is an amazing re-envisioning of the traditional story, The Snow Queen. Whether you know this story or not, Breadcrumbs will be a great read. It is a great fairy tale. I loved this story--the characters, the story, everything about it.  We featured an excerpt from this book a few weeks ago on our blog.  A great review from Jen Robinson is up today on her blog.

BIGGER THAN A BREADBOX by Laurel Snyder is one I had the opportunity to read early.  It is one of my 2011 favorites. In this story, there is a magical breadbox. But the breadbox is not the whole story. This is a great middle grade novel about loss and change and one that really understands the age group it was written for. A great deal of depth and so much to talk about around this book.  The following book trailer was done by a student--it is brilliant! (And Next Best Book reviewed this one today!)


I was able to hear Lauren Oliver at Cover to Cover after reading DELIRIUM. I loved the book and was thrilled to hear that she was writing a middle grade novel. I was able to borrow an ARC of  LIESL AND PO and loved it. Below is a trailer of the book as well as a conversation with Lauren Oliver about the book.





And a new picture book I am excited about is I WANT MY HAT BACK by Jon Klassen. I don't know much about it but keep hearing good things. Looking forward to seeing it!

To Fish is to Hope

“Hope” is the thing with feathers

BY EMILY DICKINSON

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -
That perches in the soul -
And sings the tune without the words -
And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -
And sore must be the storm -
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land -
And on the strangest Sea -
Yet - never - in Extremity,
It asked a crumb - of me.

*   *   *   *   

And "Hope" is the lady with a flyrod

BY MARY LEE HAHN

And "Hope" is the lady with a flyrod -

Learning something new -

Just for the weekend she can drop her facade -

She can forget all that she's been through -

Or she can remember - without fear -

Supported by new friends -

She'll find a way to steer -

Through all life's twists and bends -

I've seen Hope by the pond -

Heard Hope in the happy shouts -

I've remembered those who've gone to the Beyond -

All this is what hope's about.

This is the weekend of our Ohio Casting for Recovery Retreat.  Here's a post I wrote about it a couple of years ago and a PSA:

Casting For Recovery (CFR) is an international non-profit support and education program for breast cancer survivors.

The program involves a free weekend wellness program where, in addition to support and education relating to breast cancer, women learn fly fishing, "A sport for life."

CFR weekend programs incorporate counseling, educational services, and the sport of fly fishing to promote mental and physical healing. Founded in 1996, CFR offers free programs across the United States and in several countries worldwide.

Today alone, over 500 women will be newly diagnosed with breast cancer. Tomorrow, it will be the same. This number does include those already living with the disease or those who do not know they have it.

The Poetry Friday round up is at Picture Book of the Day.

Knowing Your Readers

For the first month of school, I have struggled to recommend books to my new students. I've done a much better job reaching forward to the 5th graders who were in my class last year. I knew just who would want to read the new Worst-Case Scenario book:

Worst-Case Scenario Ultimate Adventure: Everest: You Decide How to Survive!
by Bill Doyle and David Borgenicht, with David Morton, climbing consultant
Chronicle Books, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher







I knew just who would want to read the newest Just Grace book:

Just Grace and the Double Surprise
by Charise Mericle Harper
Houghton Mifflin, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher










And I knew who would want to read the newest book in the Amulet series:

My review here.














But I haven't been able to do a satisfying job of matching my new readers to books.

Until yesterday.

Yesterday, I handed The Friendship Doll by Kirby Larson (Franki's mini-review here--last one in the list) to the reader whose first book pick of the year was Cinderella Smith by Stephanie Barden (my review here).

You know that feeling when the puzzle piece you picked fits perfectly in the spot you chose for it? That's how I felt when she came up to me at the end of reading workshop and said, "I LOVE The Friendship Doll!"

The Wisdom of Clementine

Clementine and the Family Meeting
by Sara Pennypacker
illustrated by Marla Frazee
Disney*Hyperion, 2011

This is the fifth book in the Clementine series, and I like Clementine more than ever. I like her parents more than ever, I like her teacher, Mr. D'Matz more than ever, and even her makeup-obsessed friend Margaret is a little easier to deal with in this book.

I love that the characters in this series continue to grow and change.

But the thing I love most about the Clementine books is the wisdom that Sara Pennypacker weaves in so unobtrusively.

In this book, Clementine has to learn to deal with change. Her family is growing from the perfect number of FOUR people, to the awkward number of FIVE. She says, "It's all moving too fast and we're not ready."

Her mom replies,

"Oh, honey. Life is always moving too fast and we're never ready. That's how life is. But somehow that's just perfect." 

Her dad continues,

"Things are always changing -- that's life. And this?" He spread his hands to the tornadoed kitchen. "Us? Toy-truck ziti, missing hats, drill-gun mixers? Well, this is how we roll, Clementine. This is how we roll."

Lucky Clementine, to have such a family. Lucky us, to get to be a part of that family for another book. Keep 'em coming, Sara Pennypacker and Marla Frazee. Keep 'em coming!


My review of Clementine, Friend of the Week (#4) here.
Franki's review of Clementine's Letter (#3) here.
My review of The Talented Clementine (#2) here.
Franki's review of Clementine (#1) here.
And we have Mr. D'Matz, Clementine's teacher, on our 100 Cool Teachers in Children's Literature list.

A New Blog that You May Enjoy!

Today, we want to welcome a semi-new blog to the Kidlitosphere:  BOOK PEEP WONDERS. This one is unique in that the blog is written by a Mother/Daughter team. The tagline reads, "A blog showcasing the terrific literature a teen girl and her mom read and talk about."   I so love the whole concept of this blog!


To give you a little info on the blog's authors:
Alysa (the daughter)  is 13 and in 8th grade.She likes to read and listen to music. Sarah Dessen is a favorite author of hers. She also likes to write. She was the one who had the idea to start blog. She is currently exploring what high school she will go to next year.  


Andie (the mom) loves reading and writing. Andie says, "One of the things I love about writing is how it helps me uncover hidden truths." Andie is coauthor of the book, STARTING WITH COMPREHENSION. She's also done some DVDs with Choice Literacy including Write from the Start and "Synthesizing Butterflies".  All of Andie's work is centered on deep learning with young learners. Andie's current work is in  learning more about how trauma impacts learning in a third grade classroom and how educators can invite traumatized learners through literacy openings in the classroom. 


This is going to be a pretty expensive blog for me to follow. These two --a teenager and her mom--blog about the books they are reading. There are some books that are popular books and others that they have introduced me to. The mother/daughter team aren't necessarily reading and reviewing the same books, but they are sharing some YA and adult books that sound incredible as well as some conversations about books. A must-follow blog for anyone who is a reader of YA, has a teenage daughter, is a teenager, is a mom, etc.....

WAITING FOR MAGIC by Patricia MacLachlan

Does a book ever make your day?  Like you are so happy that you were so lucky to have discovered it and to have read it? That is how I felt about this book.  I LOVED LOVED LOVED Patricia MacLachlan's new book WAITING FOR MAGIC.  I am a huge Patricia MacLachlan fan and especially enjoy her short novels.  I remember reading BABY aloud to a 3rd grade class years ago and that was the book that I realized how powerful read aloud conversations could be.  BABY has been one of my all-time favorite books for years. And ALL THE PLACES TO LOVE is also still a favorite book of mine. So, I was excited to see a new title by Patricia MacLachlan. And I fell in love with it immediately-read it in one sitting!

This is the story of William and his family. In the first pages, William's father leaves. He leaves a note for William and William takes this to mean that this time, his father has left for good. Shortly after his father leaves, William's mother packs William and his 4 year old sister in the car and drives to the animal shelter to get a dog.  They come home with 4 dogs and a cat.   It is amazing how quickly you come to know the dogs and cat in the book.  They each have their own personalities and they each bring something unique to the story....and to the family.

William has the hardest time with his father's decision and carries sadness and anger with him. But the whole family is grieving and the new pets help them to heal.  One of my favorite lines in the book, is, "'This is a bit of magic, isn't it? All these nice dogs living with people who need them?' said Mama." But William doesn't believe in magic.

This is the story of family and healing and magic and love. It is a wonderful story with characters I will care about forever.  And it is truly Patricia MacLachlan at her best.  The writing is characteristic of MacLaclan's earlier books--I hear pieces that remind me of SARAH, PLAIN AND TALL and pieces that remind me of BABY. There is joy and sorrow all mixed together.

A perfect book really.