Welcome back to Perfect Picture Book Friday, Everyone!

Is there anything better than discovering a whole bunch of fantastic picture books in time to go to the library and stock up on great reading material for the weekend? 😊

Especially in winter, it’s lovely to have a big stack of books to curl up with in a nice warm spot somewhere and enjoy.

Given recent events, my choice for today is a book which celebrates letter writing, expressing gratitude, and the fact that someone who is eleven can have the perspective and talent to write a book like this!

Title: Sincerely, Emerson: A Girl, Her Letter, And The Helpers All Around Us

Written By: Emerson Weber (11 years old)

Illustrated By: Jaclyn Sinquett

Publisher: HarperCollins, December 2020

Suitable For Ages: 4-8

Themes/Topics: non-fiction, letter writing, expressing gratitude, spreading love, being appreciative of others

Opening: “Emerson loved writing letters.
She loved writing “Dear.”
She loved writing “Sincerely.”
Most of all, she loved writing everything that came in between.”

Brief Synopsis: The true story of eleven-year-old Emerson Weber as she writes a letter of thanks to her postal carrier, Doug, and creates a nationwide outpouring of love, gratitude, hope, and recognition for all the essential helpers we see everyday, and all those who go unseen.

Links To Resources: 11 year old Emerson Weber reads her book aloud (video); write a letter to someone you love and/or appreciate to let them know you notice and care; read with other letter-writing books such as DEAR EARTH…FROM YOUR FRIENDS IN ROOM 5 by Erin Dealey, DEAR GRANDMA, or DEAR SANTA by Susanna Leonard Hill (apologies for listing my own books but they are examples of other ways and reasons for writing letters 😊)

Why I Like This Book: For starters, I love that this book was written by an eleven year old – how inspiring for other aspiring young writers! And I love that she can have the kind of perspective shown in this book – from the appreciation of letter-writing which is becoming a somewhat lost art, to the desire to share her life and experiences with others, to her belief that people should be appreciated and thanked for all they do. There are a lot of adults who could learn something from a book like this, never mind kids 😊 This is a wonderful book at any time, but especially in the grip of (and hopefully soon in the wake of!) COVID-19 and all the challenges it has brought to so many, I think this true story celebrates all that people do to make our world function as it does and care for each other. As the book says:

There are lots of ways to help the world go round:
Some people collect the trash.
Some stock grocery shelves.
Some drive buses and trains.
Some help people who are sick.
Some deliver our mail.
And some people write letters.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 😊

For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.

PPBF folks, please add your titles and post-specific blog links (and any other info you feel like filling out 😊) to the form below so we can all come see what fabulous picture books you’ve chosen to share this week!

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! 😊