Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
The Big Umbrella
Illustrator: Amy June Bates
Picture Book
For ages 4 and up
Simon and Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books, 2018 ISBN: 978-1534406582
By the door there is a red umbrella, and when the little girl goes out, she takes the umbrella with her. It is there to keep off the rain or the sun, and it loves to offer shelter to all who need it.
It should be noted here that the umbrella is big, but it is not, at least initially, that big. The interesting thing is that somehow the umbrella can always accommodate whoever needs to be protected by its “arms.” The umbrella can stretch and grow to cover people and animals of all kinds, and no one is excluded because there is “always room.”
Some people think that we can only offer so much love or so much compassion; that there is a limit to what we can give, but this is not true. Love and compassion come from bottomless wells within us, and we can always offer more, just as the umbrella in this story can always get bigger to protect and serve more people. Just like the umbrella we can all keep on taking care of others, no matter how many ‘others’ there are out there who need us.
This is a timeless and ageless story that will resonate with readers of all ages.
