Customer Reviews

Miss Bridie Chose a Shovel

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This book by Leslie Connor captures the life experience of a young immigrant woman who comes to the New World with only a shovel. We see through her eyes the ways her life changes through the years, as she uses the shovel to stake out a place for herself, marrying, having children, running a farm. Although it's not a long, complicated story, the richness of the book lies in its reflection of how life progresses and changes through the years, with both love and loss. I have read it to my children again and again, and each time I feel that Ms. Connor has captured some essence of life and change that will make this a book my kids will want to have for their entire lives. It's truly one of those books we'll treasure. The elegant pictures by Mary Azarian complement the story perfectly.

This book has such a good moral about what a blessing work is in our lives and how work can make us happy. It is my all time favorite child's book.

What a wonderful story, so well told and so well illustrated. It's about a woman who chooses the useful over the decorative, and then, at every opportunity, employs her useful shovel to grow food, have fun, help animals, and help people. If you're looking for a book about choices, or a book that shows what a woman can accomplish, that is not preachy in any way. If you're looking for a book that tells of the passing of seasons and the changes in life, choose this book.

My daughter, Bridie, was given this book by a friend for her 3rd birthday. She LOVES it & not just because the main character & her share a name. Simple & lovely text, great illustrations, how could you not love it. Directly after her first hearing of this story, my girl ran into the garden & to find her own shovel! Too cute.

Upon embarking on her voyage to America in 1856, Miss Bridie chose a shovel to help carve a new life in a new land. Told in simple lyrical language, Leslie Connor's story of one young Irish woman's journey symbolizes the contribution made by millions of immigrants in building our nation.

Illustrated with colorful woodcuts by Caldecott medalist Mary Azarian, Miss Bridie Chose a Shovel offers the opportunity to engage very young students in an exploration of the themes of immigration, history and social values.

Miss Bridie Chose a Shovel tells the story of immigrant Miss Bridie who chose to bring a shovel with her across the sea, instead of a porcelain figurine or a chiming clock. The book follows Miss Bridie as a new immigrant who, with the help of the shovel, plants a small garden in the back of her rooming house and grows flowers to sell. The shovel also helps her dig through the snow, plant orchards and dig into the hill for a root cellar. The book follows Miss Bridie's life, and we watch as she experiences life's ups and downs, raises a family and grows old.

The language is lyrical and spare. There are some beautiful turns of phrases, such as: "She sold her fruit and flowers at a stand by the road, where the people and summers just kept passing by." Or after her husband dies: "She planted him a tree and some flowers underneath that come up like a memory with the warmth of every spring."

The illustrations are woodcuts and seem the perfect choice for this picture book, lending it an old fashioned air. Mary Azarian is the illustrator, and is a Caldecott medalist. For more information about her, visit her website.

I don't expect this to be a book that children will pick up on their own. There's not enough action in it. However, this is a wonderful book for a parent to read to a child, or a teacher to read to a class. There's much to discuss and savor afterwards.

My own kids are grown or nearly grown, but after coming across a copy of Miss Bridie Chose a shovel, I immediately made sure I got hold of enough copies to give someday to all the many grandchildren I don't have yet. This one is the real thing, one of those classics that will end up in your (or your grandchildren's) bookcase next to Ox-Cart Man, Ping, Where the Wild Things Are and Goodnight Moon.

Without being the least bit heavy handed,and in rich but spare prose, Connor tells the story of Miss Bridie, who brings one important possession with her when she emigrates to what we assume is America. With her humble shovel she builds a new life for herself and her family. Though she experiences hardship, danger, and sadness, the book is filled with joy. This is the one your little ones will bring to you over and over, saying "Read it again!"