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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.

Monday, August 15, 2011

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book two hundred and twenty-seven

I am one of those people who panics when something happens to my computer or my internet connection. I need these things for work, but I also cannot imagine living without my online newspapers and Wikipedia. The downside, I feel, to all this technology, is the way in which people connect on a personal level less than they used to. We can talk to one another more easily, but do we really reach out in a meaningful way?

Today's picture book beautifully shows how important it is to reach out to others so that they know that we really care and are thinking about them.


Karen Littlewood
Picture Book
For ages 5 to 7
Peachtree Publishers, 2010, 978-1-56145-545-4
   Immi lives in a place where the wind is icy and where snow falls. All she ever sees around her is an empty “frozen white world.” One day Immi is fishing through a hole in the ice and instead of catching a fish, she pulls up a small colorful wooden bird. Immi has never seen so many beautiful colors and she ties the little bird onto her necklace, “next to a small white bear.”
   The next day she pulls up a red flower. Then there is an orange starfish, a green leaf, and a purple feather. Soon Immi’s igloo is covered with colorful decorations, and her home is “the brightest thing in the land.” The colors attract many animals to Immi’s home, and soon she is no longer lonely. She has lots of friends who stay to supper and who fill the “long dark nights with stories of faraway lands.” Who sent these gifts to Immi and why?
   All too often we live our lives cut off from others, not seeing their troubles, and not reaching out to them in friendship. This beautiful picture book celebrates the magical moment when we make the effort to connect with another person. It shows us how important it is to reach out to others, even people who live far away. That moment of contact is truly a precious thing.

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