Wednesday, September 22, 2010

A Blessing from Above


A Blessing from Above

By Patti Henderson
Illustrated by Liz Edge

Ages 0-3, 3-6

Little Golden Books are a popular series of books with a distinctive look and feel (especially the gold foil spine). We have enjoyed several Little Golden books in the past, most of them making for very pleasant and gentle reading - perfect for night time. A Blessing from Above is also a very warm and sentimental book. What sets it apart from the others however, is the topic : Adoption.

This is the story of a Kangaroo (Momma-Roo) who has an empty pouch and prays everyday for a baby that she can love and hold and care. One day Momma-Roo goes for a walk, all the time looking at other animals and their babies, wishing that she had one of her own.

After her walk, she rests under a tree and notices a nest of bluebird eggs above. While she is watching, all the eggs hatch one after the other but now the nest is getting too crowded. The littlest bluebird falls down from the nest but luckily lands into Momma-Roo's pouch!

Literally, a Blessing from Above.

What does Momma-Roo do? What about the bluebird baby? And when Momma Blue Bird comes back what does she say? For the adult, it's all as expected of course, but the child asks questions - how can a baby bird become a joey? Why didn't Momma Blue Bird ask for her baby back? Delightful questions leading to delightful conversations!

I looked up the internet later to find that the author of this book, Patti Henderson is a mother to two adopted children and the illustrator - Elizabeth Edge is an adoptee herself, A complex topic, simplified to a child's level, this book will warm your heart even if your family has not been touched by adoption.

11 comments:

starry eyed said...

Cool...we can use this book, since small people are beginning to understand their story around here! Thanks for the review! Good to see you back here at least :)

Vibha said...

Its always a pleasure to read your reviews Poppins.
The Little Golden books are big hits at our place too.
Liked how this delicate topic can be discussed thro' this book. Will look out for this one.

Sunita(poppins) said...

@Starry: Oh i hope he enjoys it !
@Vibha: Thank you so much for your kind and warm words.

Meera Sriram said...

We have never read the LGB. Seems wonderful. A kangaroo with an empty pouch..wow! And what a tool to aid discussion on the subject of adoption! Thanks Poppins!

Choxbox said...

What a heart-warming tale Poppy!

And, good to have you back!

sandhya said...

Somehow I have not favoured LGB much as the ones I have come across were mostly disney versions of Winnie-the-Pooh or something similar. This one has made me re-think my prejudice, and will certainly be on the look-out for such fare. Thanks, Sunita!

Praba Ram said...

We love, love love good old LGB ones, Sunita. I dont know about the new disney ones. But what we have is a huge collection with all the wonderful classics - Poky Little Puppy, The Good Humor Man, Shaggy Baggy Elephant. I love the stories. Our prized (not-so-pricey) possession in the preschool picture book genre. I am eyeing some LGB fairy tales for S. They are very cost-effective. In fact, Pratham books ran an article about the LGB model. The very early ones in the forties were sold for 25 cents or something, I recall. Thanks for this wonderful LGB pick, Sunita!

Preeti said...

Sunita... can you tell me where I can find these Little Golden books? thanks!

Sunita (Poppy) said...

@Meera: Try it, I hope you like it!
@Chox: It's great to be back.
@Sandhya: Ouch. Actually I own a couple of LGB's which are really nice - very sweet and warm kind of books. But then it's a huge series so manybe some titles are like that.
@Praba: Wow all of them sound nice, I have Baby Animals and Good Night Little Bear and both were enjoyed by my kids.
@Preeti: In Bangalore I have picked them up in Blossoms (on Church Street) for a throwaway price. Besides any self respecting children's library should have them since as Praba pointed out they are inexpensive.

sandhya said...

@Sunita /Prabha :Sorry I didn't mean to sound condescending about LGB. Just my rotten luck that I always came across the not-so-great ones, and hence my perception. Apologies. Will be seriously looking for them. Can be found at Blossoms, you say? Time to schedule our long planned visit to Blossoms, Chox!

Sunita (Poppy) said...

@Sandhya: Not at all. Don't think you sounded condescending at all! It's nice that we had this discussion because then somebody else also may give these books a second look!

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