A Letter to My Teacher

Gr 1-3--A young woman reflects on her experiences as an energetic, impatient child by writing a letter to the teacher who nevertheless managed to make second grade "the best year ever." As the narrator's childhood antics are disclosed, adult readers will appreciate the teacher's ability to channel the girl's curiosity into her learning. Young readers may find the book a bit too sentimental, however, since the narrator's exploits lack the ingenuity of her teacher's attempts to reel her in, and fade in comparison with those of some of her wayward fictional counterparts. Each vignette from the year is illustrated in muted pen-and-ink with splashes of color, and the characters' expressions evoke their emotions as they navigate what it means to teach and to learn. The tale will resonate with those looking for an intimate portrayal of the relationship between student and teacher, who will appreciate the light it shines on the ways in which teachers can impact their students long after the single year they spend together is over.

Hopkinson's moving epistolary text and Carpenter's emotionally incisive flashbacks chronicle the evolving relationship between an impulsive second grader and her life-changing teacher. Never doubting the girl's potential, the unnamed teacher holds the rambunctious student's attention with a steady, reassuring gaze and deep reserves of empathy and patience. Those same qualities are at work in the storytelling: rather than building to a single dramatic epiphany or declaration, Hopkinson and Carpenter (who previously teamed up for Fannie in the Kitchen and Apples to Oregon) allow the girl's trust and confidence to grow little by little. There are setbacks--the girl's misbehavior during a field trip prompts the normally even-tempered teacher to describe her as "exasperating" ("That night my mom helped me look it up in the dictionary"). But by the end of the school year, the child has become an avid student and class leader. And by the end of the story, which returns to the present day, readers will discover just how powerful a great role model can be. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Apr.)