Lagercrantz, Rose

Dani, the original positive thinker, has her capacity for joy sorely tested in this, the third of the Dani and Ella volumes (My Happy Life, rev. 7/13; My Heart Is Laughing, rev. 11/14). Dani has sadness in her life, but she usually elects not to think about it. However, when her father is badly injured in a bicycle accident and ends up unconscious in the hospital, the little girl faces “something she can’t not think.” The reliable comforts of her life—grandparents, nature, best friend Ella, hamsters, and writing—kick in, but not before Dani experiences a dark night of the soul. The genius of these books lies in the simple but original kid details that keep the focus firmly on the young characters. When cousin Sven hears of the accident, he asks, “Is he very…run over?” Dani’s bond with Old Jimmy’s dog is that they both enjoy “going around and sniffing things.” Adults are present but restrained. After Dani is told about the tragedy, Bee, who works in the principal’s office, offers her no bromides. She just wraps her “big cardigan” around Dani’s shoulders and sits with her under the coat hooks. Nuanced line drawings add microplots: the picture of Dani getting her ears pierced (in flashback) shows her stoic and calm, while her father looks as though he’s going to throw up. An affecting early chapter book with a hopeful—if not yet altogether happy