cover image Something for Mom

Something for Mom

Norma Jean Sawicki. Lothrop, Lee and Shepard Books, $12.95 (24pp) ISBN 978-0-688-05589-9

What can be more uplifting than a moment of sharing between parent and child? Mom's first call summoning Matilda to breakfast seems to be the start of an ordinary day. But Matilda has different plans. As she fumbles, improvises and even fights off a playful cat, Matilda frantically stalls for the time she needs to wrap her mom's birthday surprise. And it's all worth it, for breakfast becomes the tender exchange of giving and receiving. But after all the time Mom spends setting the table, why do they resort to breakfast in bed? The mounting excitement in the story, with dialogue between the pair comprising the only text, is highlighted by Weston's colorful illustrations, which juxtapose the upstairs and downstairs activities. Ages 3-6. (September)