Paley is a fine writer who has learned in her life of observation how to let the subject drive the story and how to be a vulnerable player as well. It's hard to live up to the sheer nobility of children, but Paley is its scholar. Salter Reynolds, Los Angeles Times Book Review Paley's method is to weave intimate stories about her story-filled classroom. The vignettes that result are ideally suited to her subject.
Actual kindergartners swapping tales makes for more interesting and credible confusion than that.
Mahany, Chicago Tribune Paley, the author of numerous popular books and the recipient of a MacArthur genius grant, tells stories about children that will make you see kids in a new light. This book is filled with evidence of the surprising goodness of little boys and girls. A delightful read. K. Perry, L. A. Parent Vivian Gussin Paley's The Kindness of Children is the kind of book that once occupied a place on student teachers' shelves, where now you find only textbooks about the mechanics of the craft. It starts with an encounter in a London nursery between the children and a visiting child who has a severe disability.