Looking for Angels

A young reader's introduction to small everyday miracles follows the story of Sarah, who disbelieves her grandfather's statement that they can see angels, until he points out such items as the glow of ripe raspberries and a baby rabbit eating grass.

PreSchool-Grade 2?Grandfather informs his winsome granddaughter that "tomorrow we'll be looking for angels." What follows is a day in which young Sarah learns how to see, not merely to look. She sees the sun "sleeping" on her quilt, the "jewels" that appear to glisten in the morning dew, and a "circus" of small woodland animals in the garden. But where, she wonders, are the classic, ecclesiastical angels like those pictured in the encyclopedia? Grandfather believes people just don't take the time to see them. Sarah is convinced when she sees an "everyday" angel for herself: a shimmering hummingbird. Each of Sarah's discoveries is set off by a soft double-page spread and poetic text ("...butterflies winked through a crown of emerald leaves and marigolds.") The idyllic watercolors are appropriate for the gracefully written, gentle text. There is no real story here, no dramatic tension to keep readers turning the pages. The book does make its point, but the point is more successfully and artfully made in Cynthia Rylant's An Angel for Solomon Singer (Orchard, 1992). The metaphorical comparisons used to invoke Sarah's imagination may seem obscure to literal-minded children. They may have difficulty envisioning the discovery of angels as an extension of awareness of nature. They may also be disappointed that, instead of seeing a traditional angel, Sarah learns to look through newly sensitized eyes. This title may be best appreciated as a discussion starter in religious education or where a decidedly spiritual approach is desired.?Kate McClelland, Perrot Memorial Library, Greenwich, CT
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

When her grandfather plans a day of looking for angels, Sarah is dubious. She knows what to look for: chubby cherubs and "wings white as moths"; but she is certain that ordinary days reveal no such marvels. But Grandfather has "everyday" angels in mind, and with his prodding, Sarah begins to notice earthly wonders. The garden is studded with "jewels" ("glittering" raspberries and "winking" butterflies); a backyard "circus" flourishes, thanks to the gymnastics of a squirrel and a nuthatch. Gregory (Through the Mickle Woods) alternates a tender, genial prose text with delicate three-line poems, introduced to coincide with Sarah's discoveries. Sometimes, however, the subtle scent of nature is overwhelmed by the poetry's perfume: "Like the yellow-eyed cat, all whiskery and warm,/ the sunlight on the rumpled quilt/ purred its patchwork dreams and yawned." The close perspectives of Baker's (The Antique Store Cat) sunny, diffused watercolors invite readers into the contentments of nature. Even her stillest compositions dance with light, enveloping the audience in their warm glow. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ages 4^-7. Are angels around? Sarah doesn't think so, at least not during an ordinary day. But then Grandpa points out the sun on the patchwork quilt and the jewels in his garden--raspberries and butterflies and marigolds--and the circus going on right outside her window, where a squirrel is walking a tightrope of telephone wire. So when Sarah sees a hummingbird, "wings quickening faster than the eye can see, / hovered like grace, between the earth and sky," she realizes perhaps she has seen an everyday angel after all. This melding of story, delicate poetry, and soft, shimmering art adds up to more than just a mood piece. Children will be enchanted, just as Sarah is, by the magic she finds everywhere, and, with some gentle prodding, may start to look around for their own everyday angels. Ilene Cooper