| Another
Review at MyShelf.Com | ||||||||||||||
|
by P. Bryn Benson Josefina, the Christmas Cow by P. Bryn Benson is less a story about Christmas as it is about the spirit of the season: hope and faith. This tiny little book that fits into small hands tells the tale of a china cow given to a woman as a Christmas present. Josefina sits on the woman's mantel in the company of Cat, another china figurine who joins her on another Christmas, and observes the woman's family as it grows and moves away. Josefina sees the woman grow old and alone until one day the woman doesn't stir to make morning coffee and greet Josefina and Cat. The china figures wait and hope for a miracle, but soon find themselves chipped and broken as new owners strip the house and toss all of the old woman's belongings onto the curb. The miracle that occurs in this story isn't exactly what you'd expect. Someone comes by and rescues the broken china animals but doesn't find the pieces or glue them back together, nor is there a miracle of them becoming whole. The woman who finds them puts them lovingly on her own mantle and displays them in all of their brokenness. They are loved again in spite of their broken horns and tails and missing feet. I found this story arresting because it brings in story form the issues of saving and valuing what you have versus always wanting something new. It also illustrates how love happens in spite of our own brokenness. An avid collector of found objects like the woman who rescues Josefina and Cat, Benson has created a Christmas classic. Lisa Cinelli's brightly colored paintings add warmth and depth to Josefina, the Christmas Cow. Though this is Benson's first book, it is hoped she will have more tales to tell with the heart of this one. |
|
|||||||||||||
©
2006 MyShelf.com |
||||||||||||||
Josefina,
the Christmas Cow