Cassie spends her days watching Grandfather and Caleb in the barn, looking out at Papa working the fields, spying on Sarah feeding the goslings. She's an observer, a writer, a storyteller. Everything is as it should be.
But change is inevitable, even on the prairie. Something new is expected, and Sarah says it will be the perfect gift. Cassie isn't so sure. But just as life changes, people change too. And Cassie learns that unexpected surprises can bring great joy.
More Perfect than the Moon invites us back to the Witting family farm, visited in the Newbery Medal-winning Sarah, Plain and Tall; Skylark; and Caleb's Story. With her lyrical prose, Patricia MacLachlan writes about a family's boundless capacity for love.
The author of SARAH, PLAIN AND TALL addresses new baby jealousy in her trademark forthright, yet sensitive, manner when Cassie refuses to acknowledge that her beloved mother, Sarah, is pregnant. Mingled with the story of Cassie learning to share are the sights and sounds of nineteenth-century farm life, making for a full-hearted rural tale. MacLachlan's writing has a sincere sweetness that Glenn Close's narration emphasizes. An adult may find the result slightly cloying, but it captivates young lis-teners. It's gentle and exquisitely articulated, and the pacing is superb, pausing at the right emotional moments, speeding up when Cassie is flustered. Very nicely done. A.C.S. 2005 ALA Notable Recording (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine
