The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Young, Judy

A Book for Black-Eyed Susan

32 pp. | Sleeping Bear | February, 2011 | Trade ISBN 978-1-58536-463-3 $16.95

(4) K-3 Tales of Young Americans series. Illustrated by Doris Ettlinger. The story begins with Cora's mother's death during childbirth along the Oregon Trail. Difficult decisions pioneers had to make aren't sugarcoated: Cora's father gives the baby, named Susan, to her aunt to raise. In a fairy-tale ending, little Susan appears in teacher Cora's classroom. There's a fair bit of sentimentality in the text and prairie-themed illustrations, but the story line is engaging.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin