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Dear Book Lovers, Welcome! I am delighted that you have found The Through the Looking Glass blog. For over twenty years I reviewed children's literature titles for my online journal, which came out six times a year. Every book review written for that publication can be found on the Through the Looking Glass website (the link is below). I am now moving in a different direction, though the columns that I write are still book-centric. Instead of writing reviews, I'm offering you columns on topics that have been inspired by wonderful books that I have read. I tell you about the books in question, and describe how they have have impacted me. This may sound peculiar to some of you, but the books that I tend to choose are ones that resonate with me on some level. Therefore, when I read the last page and close the covers, I am not quite the same person that I was when first I started reading the book. The shift in my perspective might be miniscule, but it is still there. The books I am looking are both about adult and children's titles. Some of the children's titles will appeal to adults, while others will not. Some of the adult titles will appeal to younger readers, particularly those who are eager to expand their horizons.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book one hundred and forty-one

If we are lucky, some of us encounter people who help us to better understand the world we live in. They help us to appreciate what we have, and thanks to them we see and understand things in a new and more meaningful way. I have met several people who have given me the gift of better understanding, and today's book is about a boy who meets a very odd girl who helps him to see the world in a whole new way.

Earth to Audrey
Earth to AudreySusan Hughes
Illustrations by Stephane Poulin
Picture Book
Ages 6 to 10
Kids Can Press, 2005, 978-1554531653
   Ray is having a very boring and lonely time this summer. His best friends have gone to camp, and he doesn’t have anyone to do things with. Then he meets Audrey, and his whole life changes. Ray is convinced that Audrey is an alien. Not only do her pigtails look like antenna, but Audrey doesn’t think about or see things the way he does. She likes to do things that are a little odd, like training grasshoppers and lying on the ground to look up into the sky. Thanks to Audrey, Ray finds out things about his planet that he never knew, and he comes to see it in a whole new light. In fact, Ray comes to realize how truly extraordinary and special his planet is.
   In this wonderful picture book with its evocative pictures, two children share their thoughts about the wonders of the universe. They also share something else that is powerful and special – friendship. Readers can rejoice in Ray’s imaginings about aliens, spaceships, and laser guns. Though we may think that Audrey is just an ordinary little girl who is feeling lonely, we cannot help wondering if she is in fact more than what she seems. In the end, Audrey gives Ray something more precious than gold, and she makes a believer of him.

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