The Third Gift by Linda Sue Park- ADVISABLE

Park, Linda Sue. Ibatoulline, Bagram.  The Third Gift, 32 pgs.  Clarion Books, 2011.  $16.99.  Inside cover: “As sons have been doing throughout the ages, a boy is learning his father’s craft- recognizing the trees that release valuable resin and gathering the round drops, which look almost like pearls.  Or tears.  Today is a proud turning point for the boy.  They have found a “tear” of unusual size, big enough to fill his two hands.  And in the marketplace, three strangers-foreigners- have their own surprising reason for wishing to buy the day’s harvest.”  The story and illustrations in this book are touching and expressive.  We enjoyed the book from beginning to end, but were pleasantly shocked when we realized it is a story of The Nativity. We didn’t realize that the setting for this story was two thousand years ago until the very ending of the book.  This will be a favorite Christmas story for years to come.  EL (K-3).  EL.  ADVISABLE.  Reviewer: SL.