Young Hannah is visiting Chicago with her mother and her mother's friend, leaving their Amish farm for a week in the city. Hannah is delirious with joy at this birthday gift, and each night she writes in her diary about what she has seen. She wonders at the stores, and who buys all those things. She helps gentle a skittish carriage horse, recalling her pony at home. She revels in the huge buildings and the people "with all the colors of a quilt in their different clothes and faces." Hannah visits the library, a cathedral, the aquarium, and each place delights her and fills her with memories of something she has left behind. Small's art is in extraordinary harmony with the story: on each diary page, a box of text and a black and white sketch of Hannah in a right-hand panel faces a vibrant image of the city and the women in their Amish bonnets. Each is followed by a double-page wordless spread of what Hannah is recalling from her Amish community. For example, their sunlit boat ride under a bridge with its march of multihued pedestrians is followed by an image of Amish women of several generations working at a quilting frame. Hannah's straightforward voice limns a warm appreciation for urban bustle while longing for, and loving, her much different rural life, with its strong religious and familial ties. (Picture book. 7-10)
