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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, December 24, 2011

The TTLG 2011 Picture Book Celebration: Book three hundred and fifty-eight

Happy Christmas Eve! I am spending this festive day in a cabin in the woods in Wisconsin with family. We will be making sugar cookies, wrapping gifts, and eating all kinds of delicious treats. I will also be reading today's picture book out loud to everyone, and I know that the book is going to delight my listeners just as it delighted me when I first read it.


The Carpenter's GiftThe Carpenter’s Gift
David Rubel
Illustrated by Jim LaMarche
Picture Book
For ages 5 to 8
Random House, 2011, 978-0-375-86922-8
   Many years ago, Henry was a boy waking up on winter mornings in an old shack that was cold. There was no point complaining because the country was in the grip of the Great Depression, and Henry’s parents, like so many other parents, were doing the best they could to care for their family.
   On Christmas Eve in 1931, Henry and his father went into the woods to cut some spruce trees. The plan was to take the trees into New York City to sell, which is just what they did. That whole afternoon Henry and his father sold the trees that they had cut, and at the end of the day they gave the remaining trees to some construction workers who had helped them unload the trees from Henry’s father’s truck.
   The construction workers decorated the largest of the trees that they were given with whatever they could find, including tin cans. Though the tree was not covered with pretty baubles and ornaments, to Henry it looked beautiful, and he decided to make a wish. He wished that one day he and his family would have a “nice, warm house” to live in.
  This heartwarming and delightful picture book is based on the true story of the first Rockefeller Center Christmas tree that was bought and decorated by a crew of construction workers in 1931. The workers were digging the foundation for the Rockefeller Center, and the tree was their thank you for the precious jobs they had been given at a time when there were so few jobs available.
   In this picture book the wonderful text and Jim LaMarche’s beautiful illustrations come together to give readers a tale that will remind them that wishes can come true, and that the real spirit of Christmas is found in the joy of giving.
   At the back of the book the author provides readers with further information about the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. 

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