Friday Book Review: One Morning in Maine

This Caldecott Honor Book by Robert McCloskey was first published in 1952 and for those fans of "Blueberries for Sal" (review to come in a couple of weeks), you will happily note that Sal's character continues in this book, though she is a bit older now, and has a younger sister named Jane!

"One Morning in Maine" is a sweet and rich book by the famed author Robert McCloskey; many of his books being considered classics. The book begins,

"One morning in Maine, Sal woke up..."

Sal is so excited that today is the day she gets to go to Bucky's Harbor with her father. She quickly gets dressed and runs down the hall, just in time to help her little sister Jane into her robe and slippers. A wonderful, kind sister, Sal helps Jane brush her teeth - when she suddenly feels a tooth wiggling in her own mouth!!!!

Sal rushes to her mom to show her, afraid she will no longer get to go to Bucky's Harbor with Daddy. She's relieved to hear that she can still go and Mommy and Daddy went through this, too, when they were young. Mother tells Sal that she can make a secret wish and that when her tooth falls out, it just might come true!

Sal heads outside and helps her father dig clams for lunch. Along the way, she shouts her news to a fish hawk, a loon, and a seal. She excitedly shows Daddy her loose tooth and tells him that she is making a secret wish.

Sal helps her father dig and they chat about the animals she saw and whether or not they have teeth, when Sal discovers her tooth has fallen out and she doesn't know where it is! After much searching with no luck, Sal decides she will make her wish when her next tooth falls out. In the meantime, she finds a gull's feather and wonders if the gulls put their dropped feathers under their pillows and make secret wishes. She decides to make her wish on the feather instead.

Back at home, Mother takes the clams while Daddy, Sal and Jane get into the boat. The motor doesn't work, so Daddy rows to Buck's Harbor where they get the motor fixed and then head to the store. Several people in town hear Sal's exciting news and Mr. Condon, the shop owner, surprises Sal with just what she wished for - a chocolate ice cream cone! Jane gets a vanilla cone and they happily head back to the boat and back to Mom, who has fresh clam chowder just waiting for them for lunch!

This sweet book makes a timely read for Grade 1, or even Kindy aged little ones who have their own very first loose tooth. In McCloskey's usual way, the illustrations are black and white, simple, yet charming. His stories flow effortlessly and cover basic moments of everyday life with such natural realism, yet he captures the interest of children and adults every time.

McCloskey has several other refreshing books available. Most can be found at the library. Amazon also carries many of the paperbacks in their 4-for-3 promotion (buy four specially marked and only pay for three of them).

Happy tooth wiggling to all the little ones out there and happy exploring to all others who are enjoying beachtime and boating this spring and summer!