The Summer We Found the Baby by Amy Hest
Published by Candlewick Press on August 4, 2020
ISBN: 0763660078
Pages: 192
Genres: Historical Fiction
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
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Known for her picture books: the Baby Duck series, the Reader and  its companion books: When Grandpa Met Charlie and Charlie’s First Night , Amy Hest has written family stories that are heartwarming and tug on the emotions of the reader. This chapter book is no exception. The setting: Belle Beach, Long Island during World War ll. The characters: summer residents, Julie and her younger sister Martha with their widowed author father, year round residents:  Bruno Ben-Ellis, his parents and his brother Benjamin Ben- Eli fighting in the war, an abandoned baby and Eleanor Roosevelt.

On the day of the library party, Julie and Martha want to be the first ones there, hoping to get their picture taken for the local newspaper. As they approach the library steps, they find a basket with a baby  in it! Julie, without hesitation , picks up the basket and heads down the beach. Told in the voices of the 3 main characters, the reader is given their backgrounds and how this baby influences the choices they make as the story continues.

This slim, simple story is rich in the feelings, thoughts and emotions of both the characters and the time period the story is set in.  It is a book to be shared with readers who enjoy books with these attributes.

grades 3-6                                                                Consider for Cream

Submitted by Kathy George, Gray Public library , Gray Maine