Schwartz & Wade | 978-0375836152

WHAT IS GIVEN FROM THE HEART by Patricia C. McKissack and April Harrison is a beautiful story about finding gratitude in very difficult circumstances and then sharing what little you have with another. 

Things had been tough for James Otis and his mama, but when Daddy passes, they go from bad to worse.

“It was a rough few months for Mama and me.

We were already poor, but we got poorer last

April, when Daddy went to sleep on the front

porch and never woke up. Mama cried and cried,

’cause Daddy didn’t have a suit to be buried in.”

In spite of it all, mother and son manage to scrape by. 

Months later, when another family in their community loses everything to a fire, Mama says:  

“James Otis, we need to help out.” 

“How we gon’ do that, Mama? We aine got nothing ourselves.”

It takes a while to decide what he might contribute, but eventually James Otis remembers a special book his Mama had found at the resale shop. He’d read it every night until he had memorized every word.

And that’s when he knew exactly what he would do. He’d write, illustrate, and put together a book just for Sarah. The title? “From My Heart to Your Heart.” 

It turns out that, even though Jame Otis and his mama have little to spare, a “gift from the heart” is the best gift of all.

This tender story about gratitude, compassion, and sharing what you have with others makes a perfect book to pair with other books with a similar theme.

• Check out the Children’s Book Council’s Fall 2024 “Small Moments of Gratitude” for a diverse collection of other books on the theme of gratitude. (Including Finding Grateful, illustrated by Faith Pray and written by me!)
• Discover additional picture books and resources to share with What is Given From the Heart HERE.