Based on events that took place in rural nineteenth-century Utah, this story should resonate with twenty-first-century children who have grown deeply attached to a doll or stuffed animal. In her picture-book debut, Randall tells of Mary Ann, a little girl whose prize companion is a cloth doll filled with wheat; she carries Betty in her apron pocket and talks to her as she goes about her chores. When the doll gets lost outside in a storm, Mary Ann is bereft, calling and hunting, the garden blurred by her tears. The melodrama of these pages may seem overcooked to an adult, but Randall soon rewards young readers with the recovery of the lost friend: during planting season, Mary Ann spots a patch of green shoots sprouting from the mud, harvests the kernels of grain, and restores Betty to her former self. Farnsworth's oil paintings and the overall book design possess an unhurried, old-fashioned quality; and they complement Randall's simple, heartfelt story.
Ages 4-8