Frances Ward Weller

If you never saw a whale, you are missing a wonderful experience. This is the story of a young girl who is on a ship with her father. As she gazes into the wide ocean, she hopes she will see magic -- she hopes she will see a whale. It is morning and the ocean is clear and stunningly beautiful as the morning sun reflects her image in the water.

She's been on the ship before when the ocean's sunny water in the morning and turned to pink as the sunset hit the water, and like a mirror, the image of the sun, now pink is stunningly beautiful..but there is no whale that day. Down 100 feet are tiny fis. In the spring, the whales arrive for the warmer water as the songs of courting and the birth of babies occcur. But, there are names given to the crew of the large whales known for their markings.

Again, another day, and no spotting of a whale. The girl knows to look for those given the names of Appaloosa with a tail specked and spotty like a pony's markings. Then, there is trunk who has a stubby dorsal find. Midnight is all very black. The girl excitedly looks for a whale, one with the markings would be like a gift in hand. But, not that day. Perhaps they will come to the top of the water another day. The girl knows they are worth waiting for.

The girl's father tells her it is the humpbacks who come to the boats. They are the ones to look for today. But, again, there are no whales. As the afternoon sun beats on her back, making her remove her jacket and still keep looking and hoping, always hoping.

Straight ahead, the captain of the vessel sees two sprouts. He quickly turns the boat full throttle, hopefull in the path of where the water gushed up from the waves. The one called Mushroom is there. She also has her baby right by her side as they both roll toward the vessel. There is hope! A lot of hope! The baby is seen and named that day. The baby is called Snowball. Two whales are seen, and that brings excitement.

Now, the captain notes that as the bitter cold water starts to roll and tot he port the water brings bubbles, lots of bubbles. The bubbles become circles to entice the small fish to the top so they can feed from them. And NOW, the ocean rolls and huge gapping jaws open, and as the laughing galls eat the fish right from the mouth of the whales, there is great excitement.

Where should she look? Should the girl look for the terns, the boiling water, the sound of the whales rising from the deep as they splash and turn and then go low so they can breath, only to rise again and a huge black whale jumps right out of the water, higher and higher again and again, diving for breath and up again high into the air.

Now the whale puts on a show of turning and splashing and now, going under the boat, arising form the other side the cold spray of air and water hits the girl as she smiles and laughs. "This one is called Trunk!" And the girl looks at him and he in turn looks at her.

As the writer notes, it is a holy moment, like being in church. It happens so sudden and beautiful that the girl holds her breath.trunk knows they are there not to harm, but to watch the dance of the whale. Now, the sky is bring yellow and pink. The whale was watched for a long period of time.

This is the blessed time -- the time of the whale when she quitely goes underwater, and out to sea she gives one last look at the vessel and moves further, further out to sea,

What a day!!!

-----------------------------
Personally, I've had this experience. One summer, on vacation, my family paid to go aboard a ship leaving from the deck behind, out into the water to look for the whale.

There is no other experience like it! I still remember it to this day. the whales seem to come to the boat so closely that we could almost touch them.

To see the majesty of this creature leaves the observer quiet and breathless. To watch the water come out of the spout is like a show, better than Disneyworld; better than fire works. To closely observe a whale is indeed a holy experience.… (plus d'informations)

Frances Rosalie Murphy worries for her fun-loving musician uncle in this lovely Christmas picture book, concerned that the ever-deepening snow will prevent him from reaching home safely. As she and her sisters and mother make their Christmas Eve preparations, and the weather grows ever more terrible, Uncle Ambrose, cumbered by a crippled leg, tries to make his way home through the snow. Falling and unable to get up, he is aided by a massive brown dog—perhaps an angel?—who helps him up and guides him home, before disappearing back into the snow, never to be seen again...

Apparently based upon a family legend related by author Frances Ward Weller's grandmother, The Angel of Mill Street pairs an engaging story with beautiful artwork from illustrator Robert J. Blake, who also worked with Weller on an earlier picture book, Riptide. I appreciated the way in which Rosalie's story played out in the text, while Uncle Ambrose' experiences were told exclusively through the illustrations, until the two narratives "met up" and became one. As someone who loves wintry vistas, I thought that the artwork itself was gorgeous, perfectly capturing the beauty and ferocity of a winter storm. Recommended to picture book readers looking for heartwarming family stories (with a miracle or two thrown in) set at Christmastime.… (plus d'informations)

Ria is a little girl whose family migrated from the Caribbean to New York City. Back home, her animals were her friends. But in New York City, she finds herself bored to tears. That is until her neighbor, Mrs. Blum, takes her to visit the cathedral on Saint Francis Day. St. Francis declared 700 years ago that animals and people shall live together in perfect harmony. So, every year on the first Sunday in October, people bring their pets to the Cathedral to be blessed. Ria has a duck. It does not belong to her, but she brings him to the altar just the same. Just to see the variety of animals, from dogs to elephants, made her gleem with delight.… (plus d'informations)

Each year, in New York City, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, the blessing of animals occurs.

With a large host of animals, including a very large elephant, the procession begins. Slowly meandering from the large Gothic door, down the aisle and up to the altar, the animals make their way to be blessed.

The incredible sounds of Paul Winter's soprano saxophone, as the notes soar to throughout the world's largest Gothic cathedral, provide a deeply spiritual element as the majestic parade of the animals wind their way for the blessing.

This wonderfully illustrated book celebrates the real-life event which occurs on the first Sunday of October, with the story line of a young girl who experiences the magnitude of the event for the first time as she processes down the aisle with a wild goose in hand.… (plus d'informations)