A Gift for Amma: Market Day in India

PreS-Gr 1--It's market day in India and a young girl is on a mission to find the perfect gift for Amma, her mother. Navigating the market on her own, the girl travels from one stall to the next, examining each item for sale. From rich spices to aromatic flowers to vibrant textiles, the options seem endless. How will the girl find the ideal prize? Luckily, one stall catches the girl's attention, and she returns home with a gift as lovely as Amma herself. This heartwarming story about a little girl choosing to give her mother something special showcases depth and richness of color on every page. Emphasizing the look and feel of a traditional Indian market, Cabassa's illustrations are deeply pigmented, prioritizing specific hues on each spread. While the visual component of this book is captivating on its own, the text enhances the images by adding details about the sounds and smells of the market. Though presented in two short lines per page, the brevity of text nevertheless manages to tell a robust story. At the end of the book, readers find images and definitions of the capitalized words in the text. An additional page introduces readers to different markets around the world and provides interesting facts about them. VERDICT An excellent story for young readers to enhance their understanding of color and an aspect of traditional Indian culture.--Mary Lanni, formerly at Denver P.L.