This is just a gem of a book. Sorry, I had to.This sweet book starts out with a letter from a grandmother to her granddaughter talking about a very cold winter that seemed to last forever. She says the only thing that got her through that winter was remembering a spring when her granddaughter had found a toad and named it Gem. She spent the winter painting pictures of the toad's life, and the rest of the book is made up of these pictures (without words).At the end, we read the granddaughter's letter response after she has seen the book her grandmother made.I thought this was darling. The pictures are beautiful and sweet. I love the correspondence at the beginning and end.This book has a special place in my heart because of my own little backyard adventurers who will surely be catching toads of their own someday (right now it's slugs and worms). I was so very excited that Holly Hobbie came out with a new book. Little did I know how gorgeous the format would be. A lovely letter from a grandmother in the beginning, a wordless picture book in the middle, and a thoughtful letter from a granddaughter at the end. The story following a toad and then the informative back portion about toads was a beautiful completion of the book. I think I'd partner this with Melvin and the Boy by Lauren Castillo since children in both books think about having a creature as a pet and then decide to release them instead. Here's my favorite Holly Hobbie so far which is saying a lot, I'm a huge fan. I think this one could be a Caldecott contender...
What do You think about Gem (2012)?
an utterly enchanting wordless picture book, with outstanding paintings framed in white space
—mimo
I really enjoyed the wordless story. The facial expressions on the toad were very funny.
—ppunq
Beautiful ... thoughtful. Really a gem of a book.
—Deebom
