cover image Eleanor, Arthur, and Claire

Eleanor, Arthur, and Claire

Diana Engel. MacMillan Publishing Company, $14.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-02-733462-3

What to do when a cozy threesome becomes a lonesome twosome? That's the dilemma presented in this forthright picture book about death and the grieving process. For a young mouse named Claire, summers at her grandparents' country house are idyllic. But when Grandpa dies one autumn, an unshakable gloom descends on Grandma, an artist. Though she and Claire return to the country house the following summer, sadness reigns until Claire finally coaxes her grandmother back into her studio, where she picks up the threads of her creative life. Although Engel's muted watercolors occasionally err on the side of sentimentality, and the text lacks subtlety, young readers will no doubt find the matter-of-fact treatment of this emotional subject empowering. They will likewise be affected by Claire's example of how love and encouragement can help someone overcome grief. Ages 5-8. (Sept.)