Customer Reviews

Lily and the Paper Man

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The debut children's book by author and mother Rebecca Upjohn, Lily and the Paper Man is a story about compassion in cold weather. When young Lily is walking home with her mother, she observes an unfriendly-looking man selling papers on the street. She is afraid of the man, but she also sees his bare toes poking through the holes of his boots - he surely cannot keep warm in such threadbare clothes. She comes up with a wonderful idea: giving the Paper Man warm socks, hat, gloves, scarf, and a quilt she has no use for. A gentle story about the value of compassion, Lily and the Paper Man features involved text and is ideal for young readers who are about ready to make the transition from picturebooks to more involved fare.

We live in the city, so explaining why various bus stops have people sleeping on the benches (with shopping carts of "stuff" nearby) is difficult to really put into words. So when I saw this book I thought it would be perfect. It did not disappoint. I read this to my daughter at 5, and although much of it was over her head in terms of her understanding, it DID talk so perfectly about helping others, and giving of ourselves. Now at 7 she understands it and can read it herself, so we put it into her rotation of Thanksgiving/winter holidays books, which seems like a generally good time to talk about giving to others. I like the illustrations of course, which to me, can make or break a good children's book. 5 stars!

Our 2 1/2 year old daughter loves this book and it has helped her better understand how children can make a difference in this world.