A few years ago I was lucky enough to overhear our school librarian recommend this book to another parent at the school book fair. There was only one copy left so I took it.

Now, each December I get out our family's box of holiday books and this is the first one we read. My youngest child handed me a tissue before I started reading it last December! She knows how this book touches my heart and warms my soul.

I have given this book to family and friends ... young and old. Great book to spread the message of what is really important -- at the holidays especially.

Trish loves it when her family celebrates the eight days of Hanukkah. Her mother stays home from work, her Babushka makes delicious potato latkes, and her Grandpa carves beautiful animals out of wood as gifts. But while her family is preparing for Hanukkah, Trisha visits their closest neighbors. Instead of finding them busy decorating their house for Christmas, the neighbors are bedridden with the deadly scarlet fever that is sweeping the area. Trisha's family has been spared from the epidemic, but they cannot enjoy the Feast of Lights while their neighbors are unable to celebrate their holiday. Then Grandpa has an idea and "The Trees of the Dancing Goats" becomes "that Christmas...when Santa really did come."

Patricia Polacco wrote and illustrated this wonderful holiday story as a "heart song," in memory of an incredible winter on her family's farm outside of Union City, Michigan. This makes "The Trees of the Dancing Goats" even more special, because this is one of those stories that when you finish reading it you wish it were true. Learning that it is indeed a true story makes it only that much better. The illustrations, done in marking pens and pencils, capture the spirit of the season and the love the author has poured into this remembrance of her mother and her loving grandparents. This tale of the best of the Old World and the New World is a holiday book to be shared.

Drawing upon her own family's experience, Patricia Polacco shares a story of true holiday giving. Her Russian grandparents teach the meaning of friendship and miracles as they relate the story of Hanukkah and as they reach out to their Christian neighbors who are suffering from a deadly epidemic of scarlet fever. They adapt the symbols of their Jewish celebration to bring Christmas to those who are too ill to create their own festivities. Polacco's colorful illustrations capture the warmth and spirit of the characters and do much to enhance this wonderful story.

Ask most parents what they think of when they think of the elements of a children's story and you're very unlikely to get the following: a jaded Vietnam vet and an elderly, slightly "off" homeless woman who hang out in a city park in Oakland; a "throwaway" child who is on the verge of getting lost in the system; a blind goose -- not the kind who wears granny spectacles and a yellow bonnet, but one that is very seriously disabled. And yet, here they are, right in this children's book, which just so happens to be a favorite in our home.

Perhaps this book has been important to my children because it represents a more realistic slice of life to them -- before we were a family, they, like Fondo, were lingering in the foster care system. And, every day where we live, we see homeless people and folks who exist in their own version of the world.

For some children (and some parents), this might be an "uncomfortable" book, but I think it's an important one for kids of all backgrounds, especially when parents and kids can read this book together and talk about the "differentness" that is represented there -- not just in terms of Fondo and his plight, but also in terms of the supporting characters and the ways that they make a place for themselves in this very real world.

As an elementary school librarian, I had the pleasure ofintroducing this treasure to many classes the last few years. All ofthe above reviews are valid for me. While discussing how unique each person is, I always get asked about Stephanie. I promised the students I would go to Lake Merrit and look for her, see if she truly exists and if so, if she's still there. Yesterday (5/22/00) was the magic day. She and Ms. Polocco have been close friends for years, and it was right that the author write about the warmth of Stephanie's character. I could not have been welcomed more graciously, and Stephanie, on her own time, will be meeting with the students at my school. I also learned that the other main character, Fondo, is connected with Ms. Polacco's nephew to whom the book is dedicated. If you can take only one fiction (?) book with you on a desert island, each time you reread this, you will have new joy in your heart.

This book is a great book for starting discussions in literature circles. It pairs nicely with other picture books like Fly Away Home by Eve Bunting and Way Home by Libby Hathorn (unfortunately out of print). Paula Fox's chapter book "Monkey Island" also connects nicely.

Ms. Katz and Tush is an excellent choice for educators and parents to use when explaining diversity.
In the book, a young boy is introduced to an elderly jewish woman through his mother. The boy develops a bond with the elderly lady, and the two are friends forever.
This book enables children to develop an understanding about life in different cultures. It shows them that different is good and you can learn a lot from someone of a different culture.

I have read this schmaltzy tale of friendship bridging two cultures dozens of times. Not once have I finished it with dry eyes. This is the stuff that dreams are made of.

Mrs. Katz, a widowed old woman befriended Larnel Moore, a young boy. She gifted him with Yiddishisms-and good cooking. "Kugel! Such a kugel I baked for you today." She also gave a heart as warm as the sweater she knitted for him.

In turn, Larnel also performed many mitzvot (good deeds). Mrs. Katz needed a friend. He became that friend. He gave her a cat, too, for when he couldn't be there. Mrs. Katz took the kitty, who reminded her of her Myron, who was ugly as a child, too, "but such a person!" She named the kitty Tush, Yiddish for 'behind,' because she had no tail. When the cat escaped through an open window, Larnel did everything to find her. His everything included prayers.

Larnel became a grandchild to Mrs. Katz, and she his grandmother. Everything else is commentary.

Each child enriched by this joyous tale of sharing and kindness will come that much closer to being a mensch (a good person). Such a person! Alyssa A. Lappen

As with many of Patricia Polacco's books, Mrs. Katz & Tush starts with a friendship, adds a simple story line, seasons it with an understanding look at a particular culture or two, adds a dash of humour, and ties it all together with illustrations that enrich the story (other examples, among many: Babushka Baba Yaga, Just Plain Fancy and Chicken Sunday).

In this story the lives of two very different neighbors are drawn together through a small, tail-less kitten named Tush (the name itself brings giggles to the 4 year old set). Larnel, dragged along by his mother to visit an elderly widowed neighbor (and the picture of him in his chair shows you all that you need to know about how he feels about being there!) surprises himself by feeling compassion for lonely Mrs. Katz. He brings her the runt of a litter of kittens, saying that nobody else wants it. Mrs. Katz reluctantly accepts the kitten, on the condition that Larnel will help her learn how to care for it. He agrees, and a life-long friendship is begun.

There are so many great parts to this book- the growing understanding about the things that we have in common, no matter how disparate our backgrounds, messages on ethnicity, on generational relationships, and so on- that you could get the idea that this is a 'good-for-you' book. But at it's heart Mrs. Katz & Tush is the work of a master storyteller and illustrator, and is a story that the children ask for again & again & again. Ours are still savouring it after 3 years, and show no signs of growing weary of it. The illustrations- especially some of the expressions- are some of Polacco's best efforts. Don't miss this one!

I thought this was a wonderful book. I enjoyed Thayers use of poetry to exrpress the emotion in the story. The language used in the text is of very high quality and when read by an adult to a child, the child is able to thourghly understand. The illustrations play an important role with the text. They not only enrich the text, but they tell a story in itself. We can feel the emotion of the players and the crowd through Polacco's work. Overall I thought this was a wonderful book and reccomend it to a child of any age.

Thayer's classic ballad, 'Casey at the Bat,' is greatly enhanced by Patricia Polacco's brilliantly achieved, big-hearted illustrations. Ms. Polacco captures emotion, action, and character through wittily exaggerated, slightly loopy pictures, and through lots of uncrowded background shenanigans. It's very cinematic: She effectively isolates action through extreme close-ups, and extends time through a montage of events occurring within a single picture. Like the auteur she is, she even adds some opening and closing story elements (while leaving the poem intact) that augment the poem's appeal to the younger reader.

This book is simply great fun to read aloud; you'll find yourself wanting to memorize its evocative imagery and epic aspirations:

"Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt; Five thousand tongue applauded when he wiped them on his shirt. Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip, Defiance flashed in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip."

You and your youngsters will love the humor and the drama in this a classic rendition of Thayer's beloved poem. Infants and toddlers will enjoy the bright pictures, and all readers will appreciate the perfect teaming of Thayer and Polacco.

Casey at the Bat tells about mighty Casey and his missing 2 strikes - like messing up in life.

Meteor is a great childs book but it is also great for anyone who reads it. The author, Patricia Polacco, wonderfully uses all the space on each page to create an experience like you are actually there. The pictures will make children stare wide-eyed for hours. The book will make you giggle on every page. What makes this book even better is that it is completely true. The author really put her heart and soul into it because it comes out of her life experience. She uses alot of different characters and animals to liven each page up. I would recommend it for anyone but especially for younger children.

I loved this book because it was scary and exciting. I love all of Patricia Polacco's books, because they are all personal narratives!

I recently had the honor of listening to Patricia Polacco tellabout this book. Not only is the story based on true events, but shecarries a piece of the meteor with her when she travels. The story isexciting, and the pictures are wonderful. Ms. Polacco has a gift for telling stories, and she also spreads a wonderful message. Many of her stories stress kindness, compassion, and acceptance of others. I recommend, not only this book, but all of the books by Patricia Polacco.

Ironically, it was my daughter who told me about this book. A lab student from the University read it to her 2nd grade class and Ingrid was immediately besotted. I am the one who usually recommends books to this first year teacher! When she began her year of teaching back in August, the first gift I gave her was my beloved THANK YOU, MR. FALKER, my favorite Polacco book. I wanted her to know how important a teacher is in the life of her students. I still think of Eleanor Mills, my sixth grade teacher many, many decades ago!
Anyway, MR. LINCOLN'S WAY is one of six Polacco books that I gave to my daughter for her birthday. It is the touching story of an African American Principal and how he cares so much for his students that he goes out of his way to reach 'the problem child.' "Mean Gene" (who is white) is the school bully; he terrorizes the children, especially those who are different because of their race or nationality. Mr. Lincoln discovers that Gene is passionate about birds and gives him a project--filling the school atrium with birds. Gene ends up having a complete personality change which is even noticed by his teachers. The key to this story is Principal Lincoln who takes the time to discover why Gene acts out--a cruel, racist father. As teachers, we sometimes have students who are 'unlovable' and we never take the time to think why: Did this child have breakfast? Is he even loved? Is he beaten at home? I think if we spent more time learning about our student's backgrounds, we could touch more lives.

I liked the book because it was showing people that it doesn't matter what color you are or what heritage you came from, everyone is the same.

In Patricia Polacco's "Mr. Lincoln's Way," she shows the power of teachers and administrators to reach even the most unreachable kids. Typically for Polacco, she weaves magic with her illustrations and makes the story intriguing as well.

"Mean Gene" is the bully of the school, the one who has been taught to hate anyone different from himself. But Gene has also been taught, by his grandfather, to identify and love birds. He knows everything about birds, from the types of trees they like to nest in to the kind of food they need to eat. Mr. Lincoln latches onto this talent and nurtures it, asking Gene to be in charge of figuring out what should go into the school's atrium. As Gene eventually blossoms, so do the ducks who live in the atrium--and as he helps herd the ducklings towards the pond, so is he led by Mr. Lincoln towards greater understanding and tolerance.

This is a lovely book for just about any age. Younger kids can just enjoy the pictures, while older kids may want to discuss the idea of prejudice and consequences for actions. It's a treat to see a black principal with a whole culturally diverse student body, too. Highly recommended.

I am a big fan of Patricia Polacco, she's one of my favorite children's author/illustrators. This book lives up to my expectations: Warm, big-hearted pictures seem to burst from its pages--the images fill your heart and mind like old memories brought vividly to life. Ms. Polacco also places real photographs of real neighbors (in Oakland, California) amidst her soft, rolling illustrations, adding the intimacy of a scrapbook to this tale of interracial/intergenerational friendship and love.

After two boys are mistakenly accused by Mr. Kodinsky's shop (Mr. Kodinsky is a Holocaust survivor, look for the faded blue number on his left arm) their grandmother and mother help them make beautifully decorated eggs to show Mr. Kodinsky that they really are good boys. The ensueing bonds of friendship and treasured memories make for a wonderful family reading experience, especially for children attuned (or who need some exposure) to warmth and the joy of giving.

Chicken Sunday is another one of my favorite Polacco books. This is a fabulous and emotionally touching story of an interracial friendship and the children's journey of love and service. Young Patricia (who has written another great episode about her rich and colorful life) and her two best friends Stewart and Winston (who happen to be black) want to buy the boy's gramma (Eula Mae) a hat that she has wanted but could not afford to buy. Since the death of her beloved babushka, Eula Mae also serves as Patricia's surrogate grandmother. The children witness an act of racism on the hat shop owned by the Holocaust survivor Mr. Kodinski. They were going to ask Kodinski for a job to raise the money to buy Eula Mae her favorite hat. Mr. Kodinski sees the children and assumes that they are responsible for the act of violence. Ultimately, the children redeem themselves by making Pysanky eggs for Mr. Kodinski to sell in his store. He tells them the story of his life and then gives the trio the hat. Naturally Eula Mae is thrilled.
Chicken Sunday is named after the chicken dinner that Eula Mae feed the children every Sunday after Church. This is another multi-cultural book teaching children that it is okay to have friendships with people who are different. Incidentally, Patricia remains close to these boys to this very day. It also exposes children to different types of racism. This book has a wonderful lesson for children and adults.

Chicken Sunday is a touching story of friendship and family. Patrica Polacco writes of a childhood recollection. Patricia and two of her childhood friends set out to raise money to buy the beloved Miss Eula an Easter bonnet as a "thank you" for her wonderful Sunday chicken dinners. The three children need to deal with trying to prove their innocence to Mr. Kodinsky and Miss Eula after being wrongly accused of throwing eggs at Mr. Kodinsky's store. The children decide to make Pysanky eggs and hope Mr. Kodinsky will let the children sell the eggs at the hat store. The reader can definitely feel the love between Patricia, the boys and Miss Eula. The realistic drawings and colors are a great addition to this already enjoyable story. Readers of all ages will truly enjoy this book.

The reviews state that THE BUTTERFLY has a target audience of ages 6-9 but I disagree! Polacco's lovely stories have appeal for all generations. Today is my daughter's birthday; she is a new 2nd grade teacher. My favorite gifts to her are six Patricia Polacco books. THE BUTTERFLY was written in honor of Polacco's great aunt, Marcelle Solliliage and her Aunt, Monique Gaw. Marcelle was part of the French underground and resistance during World War II. She bravely hid Jews in her home during the Nazi occupation. Monique was oblivious to these happenings until she met a young Jewish girl, Sevrine who happened to be hiding in the basement. A friendship developed that has endured many decades, right up to today! Polacco's exquisite story teaches the reader about true bravery, honor, and self-sacrifice (not to mention the history of a time not so long ago). How many of us would do today, as these valiant heroes have done many times in the past?

This book is based on a true story. It is about two girls; Monique and Sevrine, in which Sevrine and her family are trying to survive against the Nazis' attacks. Before Monique meets Sevrine, her best friend is Denise. This story takes place in France. Monsieur Marks, owner of the candystore, gets taken away by the Nazi soldiers. Monique asked her mother, Marcel Solliliage, why they took him away. Her mother tells her it is because he is a Jew. A night before all this happened, Monique claims she saw a ghost girl. Later, Monique finds out that Sevrine is the ghost girl and that she isn't really a ghost at all.
Monique asks here where she lives. Sevrine says that she lives here. Monique is puzzled by this because she lives there. Sevrine tells her that she is a Jew, so she has to hise from the Nazis. Sevrine tells her that she lives in the cellar in her house, and that Marcel Sollilage has been hiding her family for awhile. Since Monique found out that Sevrine lived in her house, she would have someone to come to her room at night to play with. She brought Sevrine things like soil and then one day, a butterfly. They both go to the window to let the butterfly go and their next-door neighbor, Monsieur Lendormy, saw them together. They thought that Sevrine and her family were in danger, so they went to go find and wake up Monique's mother.
Marcel tells them to put on as much layers on them as they could and had Sevrine's parents dressed up as a priest and a nun. A car pulls up that Sevrine is going to ride in. Monique gives Sevrine her cat, Pinoff and Sevrine gives her a gold chain with a gold Star of David on it. Will Sevrine and her family survive? Will Monique ever see Sevrine again? Read this great story if you want to find out what happens. I thought this book was great because it was based on a true story. It is a great story, that tells you about two little girls that come face to face with the Nazis, but still have faith that it will all be over soon.

Acquainting readers with holocaust history, The Butterfly by Patricia Polacco successfully maintains virtuosity to a war tale of sadness and tragedy while still exploring a delicate balance between the horrors of war and the childish innocence of two little girls cheerfully building a friendship. Based on the life experience of the author/illustrator's aunt Monique, the girl protagonist discovers that her family is hiding a Jewish family in her home.
Secretly meeting and playing together each night after the other members of the families sleep, Monique and Sevrine build a poetic friendship full of hope, happiness, and a childish energy that defies the boundaries between war cultures. After a neighbor catches sight of the girls playing too close to the window, the girls realize that the secret hiding place might be suspected. The plot races onward to an exciting climax as Monique and Sevrine must divulge not only their secret friendship but also the new danger to their parents. Escaping to a new hiding place, Sevrine's family is whisked away into the dark night of the unknown, while Monique hopes for her friend's safety. A symbolic butterfly fluttering through the French family's garden later assures Monique that her friend must be alive and safe. An author's note in the end pages assures readers that Sevrine did survive the holocaust-although her parents were not as fortunate.
The characters, while handled lightly in words, convey roundness in the authentic sense of emotions as they run the gamut of fear, comfort, hate, and love. Convincing as a memoir, The Butterfly successfully conveys the quiet strength of individuals amidst trial.
Perfect as a delicate and sophisticated handling of a cruel time in history, The Butterfly provides an appropriate way to dialogue with children about the uglier side of humanity-without crossing into the gruesome or blatantly shocking (although also true) stories of war that sometimes make war books inappropriate for younger children. The Butterfly provides allusions to war crimes that will be understood by older children while still providing an eye-opening tale of friendship to younger children. Targeting the age range of 6-9, The Butterfly adeptly provides insight into the beauty of life while describing life's fragility.
Known as the author/illustrator of numerous books including Pink and Say, Patricia Polacco's pencil and watercolor illustrations highlight the contrast between the cruel and the innocent. The dust jacket of the book is a perfect symbol of the juxtaposition between innocence and cruelty since the front side of the cover depicts irises, a butterfly, and a young girl with warm watercolor tones and delicate chiaroscuro while flipping the book over reveals a Nazi officer with a hard-set jaw and unseen eyes with a swastika banner depicted in harsh black, gray, and browns. Polacco's story is an important history while her illustrations make that history palatable and vivid to child and adult viewers. Experiencing The Butterfly means contemplating unsettling human history while savoring the security of friendship.

When Great Gramma Anna left Russia to come to New York City, she had only the clothes on her back. Soon she had outgrown her dress and babushka and her mother used these and other family member's old clothes to make a colorful quilt. "It will be like having the family in backhome Russia dance around us at night." As author Patricia Polacco explains, this quilt tells the story of her family from generation to generation, and has been present at all their life events, births, deaths, weddings and other special family celebrations. It is the glue that binds her family together. Her gentle, poignant, simple text is only outdone by the beautiful brown and white illustrations, reminiscent of old photographs with only the quilt highlighted in vibrant color as it wraps babies, covers tables, is used as a wedding huppa... The Keeping Quilt is a very special history book about love and faith and our connections to each other, told with insight and wisdom.

Patricia Polacco is one of the greatest storytellers of our generation. She has put down snippets of not only her life, but of her ancestors, into delightful stories that transcends all age groups. THE KEEPING QUILT is about Polacco's Great-Grandmother Anna, who immigrated to New York City. The only two things that she still owned from her native Russia were her dress and a babushka. Anna's mother eventually takes parts of her dress and babushka along with old clothes belonging to other relatives and makes a quilt that will remind everyone of their homeland. This quilt serves as a source of comfort and memories for future generations. This is another book that I bought my daughter for her birthday. She will read this book to her second graders perhaps inspiring a new generation to write down the memories of the past.

Who else but Patricia Polacco can create a story about a few pieces of fabric that will have you singing, dancing, crying? If I tell you that I become overwhelmed at the very thought of this little scrap of a book, will you think I am overreacting? Actually teary-eyed.

The rich patchwork of a family history, on top of, covered by and wrapped within a quilt made of Great Great Grandma Anna's blue dress and red babushka, Uncle Vladmir's shirt, Aunt Havalah's nightdress, and Aunt Natasha's apron. Through all of the events that mark a lifetime, birth, marriage, family meals, coming of age, deaths, we see the quilt binding generation to generation.

In simple black and white (and shades of gray!) illustrations which we have the feeling were actually photograhs, the quilt stands out again and again as the thing that gives each scene color. It is a symbol of all the things that a family hands down to each member.

Wonderfully uplifting, evoking strong emotions, and a pure joy to share.

Patrca Polacco's My rotten redheaded older brother is a book on Patricia's childhood. It tells how rotten her brother Richie really is . Babushka doesnt seem to know how rotten her brother is. He can spit farther, climb the hihest, throw the farthest, sit the longest , get the dirtyest, and burp the loudest. Ithink this is a very good book. I liked the part when Richie said that he doesn't like rhbarb and he really does. Now he can eat more rhubarb than her.

A great book that shows the relationships between brothers and sisters, both good and bad. The author Patricia Polacco writes about her and her own brother and how she had always wanted to beat him at some thing. Trying as hard as she can, she fails every time, until one day she wishes upon a star, and her relationship with her brother changes forever.
This book has unique and colorful illustrations that help to show the sibling rivalry between Patricia and her brother. A must read for sibling of any age, and even adults who haven't spoken to their brothers or sisters in a long time.
by Jordan Miller

My daughter is a Patricia Polacco fan. She has read almost all the books Patricia Polacco has ever written. Rotten Red-Headed Older Brother is one of her favorites. Everyone can relate to a mean older sibling. Best of all, the book is based on the author's real brother.