A Hat for Mrs. Goldman: A Story About Knitting and Love

Sophia notices that Mrs. Goldman knits hats for everyone in the neighborhood and never thinks of herself. “Where’s your hat?” Sophia asks when they’re out on an icy day walking Mrs. Goldman’s dog. “I gave it to Mrs. Chen,” the woman replies. Sophia prefers making the pom-poms that adorn Mrs. Goldman’s hats to knitting anything herself, but she decides to make Mrs. Goldman “the most special hat in the world.” In a series of captivating spot illustrations, Karas (Make Way for Readers) shows Sophia hard at work, her dot eyes intently focused on the yarn. But Sophia’s knitting leaves much to be desired. Can this token of love be saved? It’s a supremely lovely story, a tribute to the rewards of grit and selflessness; Edwards’s (Max Makes a Cake) unadorned, emotionally genuine text is as winning as the pictures. Readers will be able to add two words from Jewish culture to their vocabularies—keppie and mitzvah—and there’s one more word that fits both Sophia and Mrs. Goldman to a tee: mensch. Ages 4–8. [em]Author’s agent: Lori Kilkelly, Rodeen Literary Management. Illustrator’s agent: Brenda Bowen, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. (Oct.) [/em]