Books about love and family

What is love? Am I loved for who I am or are there conditions to being loved? Can we learn to love again after we loose someone we've loved? These are questions that people have, both young and old.

One of the distinguishing characteristics of excellent children's literature is a book that speaks to children and adults, gently teaching us something of value. For the child, what is learned may be new. That might also be true for the adult, but in many cases the book can serve to remind the adult of a child's perspective.

Such is the case with the books reviewed today. Each selection is thought provoking on many levels and will touch a place in the hearts of children and adults alike.

Books to Borrow

The following book is available at many public libraries.

"Sarah, Plain and Tall" by Patricia MacLachlan, Harper & Row, 58 pages

Read aloud: age 8 and older. Read yourself: age 9 and older.

Caleb and Anna's mama died the day after Caleb was born. When Mama was alive, their home on the prairie was always full of songs and happy times. Since she has been gone, there have been no songs. Papa doesn't even sing anymore.

Papa places an advertisement in an East Coast newspaper for a wife. He receives a reply from Sarah Elisabeth Wheaton of Maine. They each send letters and learn something about one another. After a few correspondences, Sarah decides she will come for a month, "just to see."

Caleb verbalizes what all three of them are anxious to know: "Will she like us? Is our house too small? Will she be nice? Does she sing?"

The answers to these and many questions are discovered as Sarah, Papa, Anna and Caleb tenderly, and sometimes painfully, establish the early roots of their relationship. However, the critical and most difficult question remains - "Will she stay?"

Outstanding in every regard, this selection will undoubtedly capture the hearts of readers young and old.

Librarian's Choice

Library: Silver City Volunteer Library, High St.

Volunteer Librarian: Quest Lakes

Choices this week: "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George; "My Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George; "A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle

Books to Buy

The following books are available at favorite bookstores.

"The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane" by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline, Candlewick, 2006, 198 pages, $18.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 5Ð6 and older. Read yourself: age 8Ð9 and older.

Edward Tulane was an extraordinary china rabbit who was loved by a little girl. She fussed over him so much that Edward began to think of himself almost as highly as the girl did. But when Edward was lost at the bottom of the ocean, he felt his first true emotion - fear.

Caught in a net by an old fisherman, Edward was presented to the fisherman's wife and she was delighted beyond measure. Edward grew very found of the old couple and was happy with them for a very long time until their cruel daughter came for a visit, stole Edward, and tossed him the trash dump. And so, Edward's story continued, of being loved and then lost, then found again by someone new and loved once more.

By the time Edward found himself in a doll shop, he had loved many times, but he had lost all of those people and his heart had hardened. A wise old doll sat on the shelf next to Edward, and he confided in her that he was done with loving; it was too painful.

The old doll admonished him. "If you have no intention of loving or being loved, then the whole journey is pointless," she said. Then she gently told Edward something that gave him hope. "Someone will come for you. But first you must open your heart."

Profound on many levels and superbly written and illustrated, this choice is destined to become a classic.

"In My Heart" written and illustrated by Molly Bang, Little, Brown, 2006, 32 pages, $15.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 3 and older. Read yourself: age 7 and older.

What do parents do when they are apart from their child and missing that child so much?

They hold their child in their heart and feel that child's warmth, see their smile, and know that they are always together.

A tender love song of the never-ending love a parent has for their child, this selection is lovely.

-- Nationally syndicated, Kendal Rautzhan writes and lectures on children's literature. She can be e-mailed at kendal@sunlink.net.