Philip Waechter

This is a simple and sweet story. One friend needs help and seeks another friend. But they want/need something else and seek another friend. It builds from there, and then unwinds in the opposite direction. It just works. It can be a bit wordy, but that isn’t really noticed. The illustrations are nice and not typical of picture books adding to the joy of the story.

I could see kids wanting to read it over and over however I think it works better as a spoken story. The pictures are timeless and match it well, and I think this is a book that would live on in other formats.

Absolutely adorable. Decent philosophy, and a great ersatz Valentines Day card.

My 9YO really enjoyed this book. It's a nice story about a boy who tries everything to earn money to buy the new soccer shoes, but everything seems to go wrong. Of course, it's a Christmas story, and so it all turns out right in the end!