Together

Together
Written and Illustrated by Jane Simmons

Ages : 3-6

I like simple books. Simple stories. Simple characters. Simple illustrations. Simple words. And a simple world. All of which I found in Together, authored and illustrated by Jane Simmons. A story of two little dogs, Mousse and Nut, who come together in friendship. They meet for the first time, on a rainy rainy day. Mousse is out in the rain getting wet. And Nut is snug and dry beneath a red umbrella. Mousse comes over to say hello. Nut says hello too. They smile at each other. And then the sun comes out, radiant and bright. Wonderful!...they both say.

Mousse and Nut quickly become friends. They have sooo... much in common, and enjoy doing things together. They walk together. They sit together. They play and giggle together. Everything is just wonderful and simple.

So what's the story? Well, the story begins with the 'but'. There is always a but, isn't there?

One day, Nut jumps on top of a wall. But Mousse can't jump that high. Later, Mousse paddles in the water. But Nut cannot swim. Mousse wants to stand in the shade under the tree. Nut prefers the warmth of the open sun. Nut trots too fast. Mousse is too slow. One's bone is too big. The other's biscuit is too small. One's house is too muddy. The other's is too tiny.

And on and on...until their differences become so huge that it creates a chasm. And this is the point at which dark clouds gather outside, threatening a huge downpour. Mousse and Nut both feel they are not best friends anymore. Everything was horrible. It starts to rain when they part ways.

Mousse now swims alone, walks alone and chews on his bone alone.

Nut sits in the rain alone, under his red umbrella.

They both go home and lay down inside their little sheds, looking forlorn and miserable.

It is still raining when Mousse goes to find Nut. They want to be friends with each other again. And when they smile at each other, the rain stops and the sun beams down on them just as before. Wonderful day! ...they both agree.

And from then on, they do everything together. The things they liked to do together, and also the things they did differently. And whether it was sunshine or rain, every day was wonderful. Because they were together.

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I loved the illustrations in the book. As I said earlier, simple and beautiful. And the most striking thing about it was the pages in which Mousse and Nut meet for the first time, and where they reunite again after their little tiff. The depiction is the same. Heavy rains. Mousse getting wet. Nut under his adorable red umbrella. I loved how, by painting the exact same picture, the author/illustrator was able to weave the past with the present, and also create a sentimentality for that moment of togetherness.

Also, the pages which show Mousse and Nut sitting in their respective sheds feeling sad. There is nothing else on that page, except the dog shed. No sky, stars, sun, clouds, trees, pastures. Nothing. Just one shed on one page. Another shed on the adjacent page. And a dog inside each. Past friends. Presently sad. And this isolated drawing just drives home the point of how lonely they are. So much so, that it ends up making you feel lonely too.

Even after googling online, I couldn't find a personal webpage for the author to link to. But on one page, she makes a little statement that made me laugh out loud and makes it so quote worthy. She says...

"It’s a funny thing, the very thing that got me into lots of trouble as a child has become my living as an adult. Creativity is a strange beast, sometimes a curse, sometimes a blessing, and I have no idea where it comes from, but it has stuck with me from the day I was born. Now I write and illustrate children’s books, which helps keep the beast happy, as long as it’s fed, it’s content, which in turn keeps me out of trouble."

In all, this is a delightful tale about the ups and downs of friendship. And about two adorable characters who learn to celebrate their commonalities as well as their differences. Winkie really enjoyed this story, especially when he related himself to one of the characters and his school friend to the other. And in such a personalised setting, I was able to sow the seeds....that while friendship is a lot of hard work, it is well worth the effort!

Is Your Mama A Llama?

Is Your Mama A Llama?
by Deborah Guarino
Illustrated by Steven Kellogg

Suggested read together: 3-6, preschool
Recommended read alone: 4-8

'Is your mama a llama?' I asked my fried Dave.
'No she is not,' is the answer Dave gave.
'She hangs by her feet and she lives in a cave. I do not believe that's how llamas behave.'
'Oh,' I said, 'You are right about that. I think that your mama sounds more like a…
Bat!'

Lloyd, the little llama, is curious to know if your mama is a llama. So, he asks each of his little animal friends, 'Is your mama a llama?', and they reply with a clue about who their mama is. Eventually, Lloyd asks Llyn, another llama, who tells him what he most wants to hear.

The simple rhymes and the riddles make this book quite charming. At 2½, Ana is a little young to get all the nuances, but, she gets the general idea about different animals having mamas of their own kind - like a bat baby has a bat mama, a seal pup has a seal mama and so on.

However, I believe the book has appeal for toddlers, preschoolers and early readers in different ways, and can grow with the child. The illustrations by Steven Kellogg is simple and direct.

Four and five year olds, preschoolers and kindergarteners, would probably enjoy the riddles even if they don't have the vocabulary to follow every word. The simple and whimsical verses encourage preschoolers to interact as you read.

'Is your mama a llama?' I asked my friend Clyde.
'No, she is not,' is how Clyde replied.

Clyde then playfully hints at what his mother is:

She's got flippers and whiskers and eats fish all day…
I do not think llamas act quite in that way.

Given this bit of information, Lloyd guesses:

'Oh,' I said. 'I'm beginning to feel that your mama must really be a…

Turn the page to reveal:

Seal!'

The illustrations give away the animal, if we look at it from an adult perspective, because when Lloyd asks Clyde, the accompanying illustration shows Clyde to be a cute little seal pup. Similarly when Lloyd asks Jane:

'Is your mama a llama?' I asked my friend Jane
'No she is not', Jane politely explained

the illustration shows Lloyd next to a dainty calf Jane...

However, that does not necessarily take away from the clue or the charm of this book.

It is a delight to read aloud as the words flow easily and offer dramatic fill-in-the-blank kind of a pause where children would love to blurt out the animal revealed on the next page.

The rhyming verses make it easy for early readers to phonetically sound out the letters and feel confident about reading the new words out aloud.

As with classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear books, I like the predictable start of each verse with
'Is your mama a llama?' I asked my friend ____________

Another little aspect Ana and I enjoyed is that the book ends with

My mama's a Llama!
And this is...THE END!

At the end of every book I read to Ana, I shut the book and declare "The End" which tells her that we've finished reading the whole book and we can move on. And, to read out "The End" as part of the book was quite amusing for me.

This is one of the few books I ended up buying for Ana as it seems to have a long-lasting appeal and, just like Alphabeasts, I am hoping will grow with her over the next couple of years.

One year of Saffron Tree..

Saffron Tree turns one today! As you all know by now, the Saffron Tree community shares a tremendous amount of passion and love for children's books. It's been a joy to connect with one other at a personal level. Thanks to all the wonderful children's books and the wonderful people who create them - the authors, illustrators, publishers mainly!

At Saffron Tree, it is our desire to share our experiences with children's books we've enjoyed reading to our kids, and help spread the joy of and love for reading to children - primarily in the early years of childhood by showcasing the best in Indian, American, Indian American, and a variety of multi-cultural children's literature.

Thanks for being so supportive. Thank you for being part of our beloved ‘Saffron Tree’.

On this happy occasion, I am honored to introduce to you and children all over the world, the very colorful"Tsunamika", who is a multi-cultural symbol going around the world spreading love and peace amongst all.

She is a little doll who was born of the Tsunami in rural, coastal parts of Tamil Nadu. She is a creation of the fisherwomen affected by the Tsunami as part of a women's sustainable livelihood project undertaken by Auroville. She represents love, sharing and caring and has been a symbol of simplicity, multi-culturalism and peace. She belongs to everyone who wants to give her a home. And has been going around globally carring messages of peace, love and harmony. She does not come with a pricetag.

I am one of the ambassadors for the project here in North America. The project co-ordinators have distributed one million Tsunamikas worldwide. If you live in the US and would like to receive her as a gift for your children and your friends/family, please email me with details about quantity and your address. For folks in India, there is a list of ambassadors on her website that you can get in touch with. In Chennai, she is available at Auroville's showroom in Khader Nawaz Khan Road.

There is no better way to celebrate Saffron Tree's birthday than by sharing a little children's story about Tsunamika. A children's book was published last year titled Tsunamika Meets Friends. The book is not available for sale, but like the doll itself is being shared free on her website. Today, I am sharing the story with you here to read to your children along with the beautiful illustrations. Story written and illustrated by Manoj. Adapted from Tsunamika's Website.

Tsunamika meets friends
There was a little girl who lived on an ocean floor.
She had never seen the sun, the moon or the stars because no light ever reached the ocean floor. She lived all by herself and felt very lonely.
“I wish I had friends,” cried the little girl.

One day a starfish appeared and asked her, “Have you seen the sun?”
“No,” said the little girl.
“How sad,” said the starfish, and went away.
The little girl started looking for the sun everywhere; she walked a long long way. One day she saw a giant conch with lovely spiral and colourful patterns. She knocked on the door of the conch. A sage came out and asked, “My child, what can I do for you?”

The little girl asked: “How do I find the sun?”
The sage said: “You must think only about the sun for 21 days, and then you will see the sun.”
So the little girl sat on a rock at the bottom of the ocean and thought only about the sun.
She sat there for 21 days, without playing, thinking only about the sun.
On the 21st day, suddenly the ocean floor shook powerfully and threw her upwards.
She went up…up…up in the water till she reached the surface of the ocean.
And she saw the sun, shining in the sky!




She was delighted to find the sun smiling at her.
The sun said: “I am the sun, welcome to the world of light. I am pleased with your determination to find me. I shall give you a special gift, please ask whatever you wish.”



“I want to have lots of friends,” said the girl.
“So be it, you shall have lots of friends, and I shall always be there for you whenever you need help,” said the sun.
Then huge and swift waves rose up and carried her away.
“Where are you taking me?” asked the girl to the giant waves.




“We shall take you to distant lands,” said the waves.
The waves traveled far and wide and reached a distant land and left her on the shore.
There she saw many little huts that were destroyed by the giant waves.
People were crying and the children were terrified. The little girl had never imagined this could happen. She felt very sad. But she then remembered the words of the sun.



“Sun, Sun, how can I help these people? How can I make them happy?” asked the girl.
Almost immediately the sun appeared from behind the clouds, and said: “Give them your love.”
So the little girl went to a woman who was crying, and said: “Please accept my love.”
The woman looked at the little girl and said, “I lost my children, will you be my daughter?”
The little girl said “Yes!”


The woman was happy. She asked, “What is your name?”
“Tsunamika,” said the little girl.
Then a little boy came along and asked, “Tsunamika, will you be my friend?”
She said “Yes,” and became his friend.
Then more and more children came to her and asked, “Dear Tsunamika, will you stay with us?”
Tsunamika multiplied into hundreds and said, “Yes, yes, yes” to all of them.
She went to each and every home and became a member of the family.
And people started coming from distant lands, all looking for her.




And Tsunamika, the little girl, looked up at the sun and smiled. She realized that she could give her love to all the people in the world. So she multiplied into thousands, and then tens of thousands, as she crossed the oceans, reaching far and distant lands.



That is how she started traveling all over the world.
Now she has reached you.
She is your friend, little Tsunamika!

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Sameer's House

Sameer's House
by Deepa Balsavar & Deepa Hari
Illustrated by Nina Sabnani

Ages : 4-8

Winkie's been learning about the planets and the solar system in school off late. And he is quite taken up with the subject. In conjunction to this, his teacher has also been trying to introduce the concepts of land, air, water and of continents, and how they are made up of countries, which is where each one of us lives in. A bit of a complicated concept to introduce to a child, no doubt, but her Montessori style of guidance has paved the way very smoothly, and he can now tell you that to take a trip to Mars, he would have to don a space suit and get into a spaceship, and it will fly high, high and high beyond the sky and after many years, land on Mars. But if he wanted to go to India, all he'd have to do is buy a ticket and get on an airplane.

And this seemed like the best juncture to introduce to him this Tulika publication called Sameer's House. Its not a story, in fictional terms. Rather it addresses directly the fascinating concept of how we are all interwoven into this universe, and how there is so much more beyond the extent of our direct vision in this world. And it feels like a great starting point to whet a child's curiosity about how this world came into being, what makes it tick every single minute and day, and are there any other worlds like ours, out there? Pretty heavy ammunition to offload into a tiny mind, no doubt...but a start is made very simply in this book.

Turn to the first page, and you are introduced to Sameer. A regular little boy, who was probably playing some football, and turned to the camera for our benefit and posed with his foot resting on the ball. No, its not a real photograph or anything, but just the way he is shown standing and smiling directly at the reader, that gives you that impression. And on the adjacent page is a picture of his house. A regular little house with green railings, a basket of flowers hanging from overhead and a pink roof.

Let's turn to the next page. What you see is a busy street. Saraswati Street. A very busy street. Taxis, cars, a flower shop with fresh garlands hanging (I can almost smell the fragrance...), street vendors by the dozen, a roadside cafe with people sipping some juice (mmm...sugarcane, please!), another house with clothes hanging on a line, an STD booth, and at the very corner...a little house with green railings and a pink roof. Sameer's house.

Turn over to the next page and you are greeted by a skyline view of Mumbai city. A sketch of the Arabian sea with a ferry full of people, a sketch of the Taj Hotel, the Gateway of India in the right corner, a row of tall buildings in the backdrop, and in a tiny corner in the right...just behind a grove of palm trees, is the house with the green railings and the pink roof. Sameer's house. On Saraswati street. In Mumbai city.

Thumb the leaf over to the next page, and you have panned out into the outline of the state of Maharashtra, in the western coast of India. Home to luscious mangoes, grapes, pomegranates and sugarcanes. All of them are depicted on the map of the state. In the exact place which marks Mumbai city, is the sketch of a house with green railings and a pink roof. Sameer's house. On Saraswati street. In Mumbai city. In the state of Maharashtra.

Over to the next page, and we see the full map of our beloved subcontinent. All the states shaded in different colours. And the rest of the continent in yellow. Different kinds of vegetation to show the climatic divides in the country. And even from this macro range, Sameer's house is still very prominent, with its green railings and pink roof. And here, we learn that Maharashtra is a state in the country of India.

Now you know what comes on the next page. 3/4th span of the Asian continent, showing the wide expanse of the ocean and Chinese mainland and the South East Asian countries. There are huge ships sailing between the countries. We now get a view point of the continent of Asia. Sameer's house is still visible to the eye.

Zoom out zoom out...and there we have it. A beautiful view of the earth, with a bit of the universe twinkling in the backdrop. The unique V of India can be seen, merging into the rest of the landmass. And we still know where Sameer lives. His house makes it to this page too.

Turn over, and you can see a graphical representation of the solar system. A huge orange ball of fire that is the sun is at the left corner of the page, spanned by orbit after orbit filled with the planets as we know them. Our beautiful blue earth in third place. But we are too far out now. We can no longer see Sameer's house.

One more page to go. What do you think you will see there? The gorgeous, mysterious blue Milky Way. A first look at the Universe as we have heard of it. A silent, star filled universe. It all just seems like a haze of colour on canvas. No sign of the earth, leave alone Sameer's house.

And that is where things stand at the end of this book. For added effect, I stopped reading, hushed him and we just looked at this picture in complete silence, watching the hazy swirls of planetary objects with quiet reverence. T.h.i.s is our place in the universe and the bigger scheme of life. A speck. A minuscule dot. Its nothing if not awe-some. And its a journey that you make from simplicity to complete depth, hand in hand with your young one.

Enjoy!

Shoe Baby

Shoe Baby
written by Joyce Dunbar
illustrated by Polly Dunbar

Suggested age: 2-5 years

A baby heads out on a magical journey in a gorgeous red shoe. He is always courteous and says, "How do you do". He invites the Queen to tea who brings the King too. And this gracious baby says to them with a bow, "How do you do". Until at last he meets a giant with only one shoe, and a giantess crying boo-hoo-hoo, when the baby pops right out of his shoe and says, "Peekaboo! Hi papa, Hi mama, how do you do?"

This charming book is written by Joyce Dunbar and illustrated by her talented daughter, Polly. Fly Away Katie was such a hit with Ana that I decided to get another book by Polly Dunbar. I love her illustrations just as much as Ana seems to.

The brilliant and vibrant colors on the cover - a gorgeous red shoe set against a glowing deep blue - along with the suggestion of motion just jumped out at me and I had to give it a try.

The rhymes are easy and flow very smoothly throughout the book.

At long last this baby slept in that shoe
So dozy, so cozy, so tickety-boo.

Ana is tickled pink about the "tickety-boo" that every night since I borrowed the book she has insisted this be the book I read to her last before I turn the light off and tuck her in. And, she loves it when I adapt it to say At long last little Ana curled up her toe, So dozy, so cozy, so.... and I pause so she can gleefully chirp tickety-boo.

This book is a delight to read aloud. It is cute and simple, and I have a feeling it appeals very much to toddlers' sense of adventure and imagination - in something as simple as a shoe, the baby manages to go everywhere.

While the illustrations might seem too busy at times, they match the words on the page close enough that 2+ year olds can easily follow along and discover the happenings on the page.

If you are looking for a profound story or a message, this is not the book. But, if you want to read a cheery little book and leave your 2- 3-year olds in a cozy warm imaginative adventure when you tuck them in for the night, this book fits the bill.

The first few pages, at first read, seemed to just go on in a prosaic and predictable manner, where I kept telling myself, oh, so what, a baby just goes around in a shoe, Big Deal... but, the last few pages made it interesting for me: to discover that the baby was sitting in his daddy's shoe all along adventuring, while Mommy and Daddy look for him everywhere, until they finally find him.

Somehow, without having to explain it all, this message got conveyed through the illustrations and words to Ana. And I think, therein lies the success of this book.

As an added bonus, the wide array of colorful shoes Polly illustrates are a big hit, probably because Ana is a little girl. And since she can tell the difference between tall boots and short boots and sandal shoes and sneaker shoes, this book keeps her busy just gazing at the various colorful shoes Polly presents... Thanks to Fly Away Katie, she has been asking me for blue shoes, and now she seems to have her heart set on lime green shoes... so, if your wee little baby girl has a bit of a shoe obsession, consider yourself warned :)

Plus, the first and last page has a sprinkling of patchwork hearts that doubles as a counting exercise with Ana. I simply ask her to count and let me know how many hearts there are, and for some reason it always ends up being twelve! [Of course, that's as high as she can go now...]

And, apparently, there have been puppet shows based on this book, and it could possibly be a favorite with the new generation of kids. Judging by Ana's response to this book, I agree :)

The Bicycle Man

As years go by, the school days makes one feel nostalgic. As our children go through the same motions, it reminds us of the similar events that happened in our life. Surprisingly, as we grow older our memories of school are always good - probably the human mind acts as a great filter and keeps only the good memories. Any tinge of disappointment, issues we had during school disappear from our memories and only the best of times at school are evergreen in our minds. Probably that is the reason why we wonder with amazement and incredulity about why our own kids now do not want to go school. Is it not the most wonderful thing in the world? (atleast for us).


But, there are a few days in school which will probably appeal to all - parents and students. Teachers might be ambivalent - since, they have to take care of the hyper excited students during the sports day. But, the teachers always pull it off. I hardly seen an sports day that did not go well. It is always surrounded with hoops of excitement, sound, mirth and oodles of energy.


Allen Say relates the excitement and unusual nature of the Sports Day in his native school in Japan in this exciting book called - 'The Bicycle Man'. The story is set after Japan had lost the second world war and US soldiers were present all over the Japan.



The book starts off with a wonderful illustration of a school built midway on a hill. From the school, one could see the sea, the mountains above, the tiny houses of the village below, the green forest encompassing the whole hilly region and paddy/rice fields. One of a fine spring day, the sports day is held with great enthusiasm. The kids are divided into two teams - the red team and the white team based on their head bands. The kids clean up the ground, tie colourful flags and streamers to bamboo poles and the excitement starts. Variuous competitions are held and prizes given out.


Suddenly, a silence falls over the chaotic children. Every one quietly looks out at two foreigners staring at them. The Americans. One is white and other black. The foreigners smile at them and say something in their language. The tall black man jumps into school and wishes the Principal and points to a bicycle. The Principal nods and gives him a bicycle. The white man jumps into the ground and stands in the center as the black man starts his pyrotechnics on the bicycle. The black man does front-wheeling, zig zags using the bicycle and rides the bicycle backwards. There is circus in the school.


Suddenly, everyone is won over and they cheer the Americans with great gusto and enthusiasm. The Principal gives the Americans a gift and they walk away smiling with their wonderful gift.



A great story that tells us that no matter what your colour is, what your caste, creed or religion is - we can still communicate. We can still be friends without imposing our language, religion or culture. All that is needed is a wonderful smile and probably a bicycle! :)


I enjoyed it immensely and loved every page of the book. The illustration are similar to Japanese illustrations. It gently invites us to partake in the culture of other people. Some of the pages from the book can be seen in Google Books.

Biennial of Illustration Bratislava

The awards of Biennial of Illustration at Bratislava, Slovakia for 2007 have been announced. The Grand Prix award winner is Einer Turkowski.




I was blown away by the Children's Jury Award winner Jae-Hong Kim, an illustrator from South Korea. Check out this illustration. There is an interesting urban legend associated with this illustrator too.



An Indian angle to this award is that for year 2003, one of Katha's children's book publications, The Song of a ScareCrow, won Special Honour award.

I Took the Moon for a Walk

I Took The Moon for a Walk
written by Carolyn Curtis
illustrated by Alison Jay

Imagine a full bright moon, with elegant legs and arms, reaching down from the sky, holding your hands and walking with you under the night sky, exploring the favorite spots in your neighborhood...

The rich illustrations evokes a magical night world in this book, and, accompanied by rhythmic verse has become a bedtime must-read over the last few weeks in our house.

"I warned the Moon to rise a bit higher
so it wouldn't get hooked on a church's tall spire,
While the neighborhood dogs made a train-whistle choir
when I took the Moon for a walk."

Each verse ends with the same eight words very reliably and reassuringly that after the third read, when I pause at the right place, Ana completes the verse gleefully.

And, Alison Jay, the illustrator, cleverly hides a few details not mentioned in the verse which promptly becomes a treasure hunt once we hit upon it. For instance, during the above verse, the moon loses a red shoe presumably hitting against the church spire, which the boy then recovers in a subsequent page.

The cool night blues are very soothing in the illustrations, pitted against some warm earthy hues down below. The language is lush and lyrical as well. Ana loves to have me repeat the "rust-bellied robins", "train-whistle choir" and such phrases, which are a charming but challenging for her to repeat at this age...

I was attracted to this title as it is a Barefoot Books publication, but when I brought it home from the library initially, I was a little skeptical as I was not sure if it had more to offer than the delightful and dreamy illustrations. But, all that vanished within a couple of reads when the assonance in the prose makes it flow like a poem, simple yet elegant. The first verse:

"I took the moon for a walk last night,
it followed along like a still summer kite,
though there wasn't a string or a tail in sight*,
when I took the moon for a walk."
*high in the sky through darkness and light

caught me by surprise and didn't take long to grow on me (and Ana) so much so that I have had to request an extension so we don't have to return it to the library yet.

With 4-6 year olds, this book can lead into basic introduction to Nature, Science, Celestial Night Sky, and the more physical realities with the Moon Facts listed at the end of the book, while still preserving the imaginative and magical world personifying the moon through the motley illustrations that project the ethereal story of sorts.

For 2-4 year olds, where Ana falls, the illustrations are brilliant, and the verses are mellifluous and soothing. The illustrations tightly couple with the verse which make it easy for toddlers to follow along and improve their vocabulary: "Hand holding hand" shows the moon holding the boy's hand and willingly exploring... and it struck me that not too long ago was a full moon while Ana and I were driving home when she spotted it and joyfully noted that the moon is coming with us... until I had to make a turn and we missed the moon which made her wonder where did the moon go?

Bottom Line: Wonderful illustrations coupled with fluid and harmonic verse makes this a 4 bindi book for me.

While the world celebrates "Non-violence and Peace" in the context of Mahatma Gandhi's 138th birthday on October 2nd 2007,

Saffron Tree brings to all its children "The Peace Book" by Todd Parr.

The book cover says it all -

The book does not scream "no war". Neither does it evangelically advocate non-violence. Instead it unleashes all the feel-good things for those unblemished minds that will be tomorrow's messengers of peace.

Boys and girls of different color and culture joining hands is what we see as we enter - Peace is making new friends. More such thoughtful one-liners make up the rest of the book. While, I am tempted to reveal it all and give away the book, I will withhold myself and let you in on the fact that the book covers all that Gandhi essentially stood for - love, compassion, tolerance, coexistence and peace. Loaded with deeds of goodness like planting a tree or sharing a meal and sprinkled with pleasantly blissful things like watching it snow or wishing on a star, this book can touch little hearts in an amusing way. Strikingly colorful and typical of all of Todd's works, the meaningful doodles illustrating all that brings us peace, can be very appealing to children. I particularly like the one that goes Peace is having enough pizza in the world for everyone - a delightful way to drive home the message. Explaining the essence of "world peace" to our sons and daughters can be a complex endeavor, but with a diluted but equally valuable definition presented in this book we can teach them to spread goodness and cheer in little ways. The book ends with Todd's signature statement - "The world is a better place because of YOU"!

Here's wishing for Little Gandhis all over the world on "International Day of Non-violence"!