Nini

K-Gr 2—In this lyrical story, a child in the womb listens to her mother's voice speak of "bamboo boats and bicycles that rolled past golden fields and jagged mountains." When the infant is born, "the first hands she felt were the soft hands of love," but the next day she joins the "chorus of crying orphans." On the other side of the world a family longing for a child receives Nini's photograph and the journey of adoption begins. Thisdale's digitally enhanced illustrations are a dreamlike blend of realistic pictures of the child at different ages and scenery from two different countries. Chinese symbols are etched into the backgrounds. Evocative language and rich imagery explore how "the past [is] joined with the present, like a bridge that connects one place to another." A poetic portrait of family and adoption.—Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada