MY LITTLE GIFTS

A little girl learns the value of giving and receiving gifts.

In a lift-the-flap book that begins with an unspecified holiday, the unnamed little girl is encouraged by her parents and grandparents to see beyond the gifts that come in shiny packages to gifts of the heart. First she shares her brand-new suitcase with her little sister, Lili, at her father’s insistence. She discovers that sharing can involve baking a cake for their parents, giving the gift of knowledge to Lili about something learned in school, and making friendship bracelets that comes with the gift of help from her best friend. Along the way are somewhat syrupy lessons: “Her kind words are a gift / I can treasure in my heart”; “Bits of love are better / than bits of cherry, / especially on toast.” Even with the didactic tone of the story, the crayon illustrations on large pages will appeal to children. Several of the flaps have multiple folds, ensuring a surprise on nearly every spread. The square, sturdy, easy-to-turn pages have lots of white space, and the illustrations are of happy children (with paper-white skin) and familiar objects of childhood.

A nice-enough entry in the Growing Hearts series.