Lucia and the Light
Kindergarten-Grade 2–Lucia, her mother, and baby brother live in a small isolated cabin in the Far North. As the snows mount and the winds howl around their tiny home, their food supplies dwindle. One morning, the sun does not rise. Darkness envelops Lucia's world and when the cow stops giving milk, the brave child decides to go out into the world and bring the sun home again. She skis and trudges on in spite of adversity and fear and faces the terrible trolls. Of course, Lucia succeeds, returning home to her mother's love and a beautiful light-dappled world. This heartwarming adventure will delight girls and boys with its terrifying trolls and triumphant travails. GrandPré illuminates the tale with soft, fluid multihued paintings that vividly convey both danger and sunlight-filled safety and warmth. This fablelike story is a wonderful companion to Mordicai Gerstein'sCarolinda Clatter!(Roaring Brook, 2005) and perhaps a favorite version of Jack and the Beanstalk.–Tamara E. Richman, Somerset County Library System, Bridgewater, NJCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.