Under the Lemon Moon – Pocketbok

The moment Rosalinda spots the man slipping away with her lemons, my daughter went quiet — she was that hooked. Sweet story about assuming the best of people, and the paperback holds up fine to a 7-year-old's nightly rereads.

My 7-year-old asked to read this one again the same night we finished it, mostly because she loved Blanca the hen following Rosalinda around the garden. The story handles the man with the sack of fruit in a way that sparked a good talk about why people take things.

The scene where Rosalinda and Blanca creep out to the garden at night is so quietly tense that my daughter held her breath. I like that it doesn't talk down to kids about the man with the sack of fruit — it gives 7-year-olds real moral weight to chew on.