Celia and the Sweet, Sweet Water

Celia and the Sweet, Sweet Water

Katherine Paterson, Illustrated by Vladmir Vagin

Clarion Books, 1998

Pages: 32

Reading Level: 4-8

Genre: Picture Book

Celia, here mother Mara, and their dog Brumble all lived together in a little cottage in the countryside. one day Mara became very ill, and was not getting better. Celia heard her mother say that if only she could have a drink of the sweet sweet water of her childhood she would be saved. So Celia and Brumble set off to find the sweet sweet water. They walked into a forest, and the first thing they ran into was a wild child. He scratched at the air, but Celia was not afraid. She offered him her cheese and bread, and the boy was astonished, for no one had ever been to kind to him before. He ate it, and told her that if she were to pass through his part of the forest again, that she should stop and say hello. Celia agreed, and then went on. They came out of the forest and met a woman in a boat crying. Celia asked what was wrong, and the woman told her she was lonely. Celia gave the woman her cloak and told her they'd be her friends and tell her stories as they crosses the lake in her boat. The woman agreed. After they crossed the lake, they came to a mountain, where there was a very angry man who wouldn't let them pass. Celia knew that music always calmed her down when she was angry, so she pulled out a flute and played till the man was no longer angry. Then she gave him the flute, and the man offered to carry her across the mountain so she could teach him how to play as they went. They crosses the mountain and came to the village, which was deserted. They found the well, which still had water, but there was no bucket. Celia tells Brumble to lower her into the well and she will fill her bottle. He did, and Celia filled the bottle. They were very happy. They headed home, with the help of the the man, woman, and child. When they came in view of the house, Celia ran, and tripped. The bottle broke and the water spilled. Celia was a wild as the boy, as angry as the man, and as sad as the woman. She cried over her mother, and her mother tasted the tears. She opened her eyes and said that the tears tasted the same as the sweet sweet water from her childhood. They learned that you can't share in someone's happiness until you share in their tears.

I would recommend this book to someone who has had a lot of hardship in their lives, because this book teaches that there isn't happiness until there has been sadness.

Problems: This book might convince children to leave home with no adult help at a young age.

My reaction: This story has a good theme, and I liked it.

My rating: ***