The Worry Stone

I came across this in the Cascade Elementary Library and brought it home to read because I am a worrier and because I loved the art. I know how difficult it is to draw people; Gerig, whose training is in medical drawing, captures faces, hands and attitudes perfectly. The story is framed by an elderly woman seeing a lonely boy in the park where she sits every day, and remembering, then retelling the story of the worry stone she found as a child and her beloved grandfather who spoke of its powers. The story within the story is a Chumash Indian legend about the princess whose tears form the worry stones. The lilting words and tone make the reader feel that they are in the story.