Amber Was Brave, Essie Was Smart: The Story of Amber and Essie Told Here in Poems and Pictures

Product Description

As their family faces hard times, sisters Amber and Essie know they have to help their mother and work together to get things moving in the right direction once again.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3-Vera B. Williams' award-winning book (Greenwillow, 2001) is performed by three women who bring its lyrical words to life. The story follows two young sisters, and is told in unrhymed poetry and song. Each poem reveals a nugget about the girls and their situation. They are each other's comfort as Daddy is in jail and their mother struggles to keep the family afloat. There are gently humorous moments, as well as heart-wrenchingly poignant ones. The narrators capture it all, providing voices for each character. They treat each of Williams' carefully-chosen words with the respect it deserves, adding vocal punctuation that is missing in the text, and possibly making this book more accessible to a younger audience. Listeners have time to appreciate the illustrations which, like the text, capture much in only a few lines. Listeners will cherish this sweet treasure.

Teresa Bateman, Brigadoon Elementary School, Federal Way, WA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.