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'Boxes for Katje'
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[DEC. 8, 2004]
"Boxes for Katje," by Candace
Fleming, illustrated by Stacey Dressen-McQueen, Melanie Kroupa Books, Farrar,
Straus and Giroux, 2003, ages 5-8, 32 pages
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 Review by
Louella Moreland
Based on events that happened to the
author's mother when she was a girl during World War II [here], the
story of "Boxes for Katje" was born. Parents looking for a solid
book to introduce the hardships and sacrifices of Europeans during
the war (without scaring their young children with the atrocities of
the Holocaust) will find this unique picture book a great place to
start.
One spring morning, the postman
delivers a small box to a little girl in Olst, Holland. The package
was sent from the United States in response to the Children's Aide
Society. It contains a cake of soap, a pair of wool socks and a
candy bar. Quickly, "before she could change her mind," Katje shares
the chocolate with her mother and the postman.
Inside the box, she also finds a
letter from Rosie, the American friend who sent the treasures. Katje
writes back, thanking her new friend for the gifts, beginning a
correspondence that changes each little girl in a profound way.
As Rosie learns more of the
hardships that are occurring in war-torn Holland, she sends more
boxes in the summer and fall, each a little larger than the one
before. Each delivery is met with excitement and more sharing
between Katje and the townspeople of Olst. The two young girls write
many letters and become friends.
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this article]
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Then one dark, cold, snow-deep
morning Katje hears a knock from the postman and finds all the
townspeople crowded into her yard. This time the delivery is many
boxes, heaped upon sleigh after sleigh -- enough food and warm
clothes for all the people of the village. The letter at the bottom
of the last box explains this wondrous gift, made possible through
the efforts of Rosie's hometown by way of food drives and clothing
drives. Local businesses and friends wanted to do their part to help
the hungry, struggling people in Holland.
The following spring Katje, her
mother, the postman and the other townspeople of Olst want to thank
their American friends for the generosity by sending a package
across the Atlantic in return
-- a package filled with their native
tulip bulbs to plant all over the American town of Mayfield!
Of course, the story is a lovely
picture book filled with delightful illustrations by Dressen-McQueen
that evokes the feelings of the 1940s. It is a story of sharing and
friendship without the background of history. However, combined with
the author's explanation of the story, on the last page, it
transcends itself into a deeper story of strangers helping other
strangers during the ravages of war. In a world that still has those
devastating conditions today, it is a gentle reminder that we need
not look far to make someone's life a little brighter.
To share this wonderful picture book
or others by Candace Fleming, come see us at Lincoln Public Library,
725 Pekin St.
[Louella Moreland, youth
services librarian,
Lincoln Public
Library District] |
