Dashka Slater's The Sea Serpent and Me gets me every time. It is the bittersweet tale of a sea serpent who one night falls out of the faucet and into the bath tub (and heart) of a young girl. As the days pass, the sea serpent grows larger and larger. As much as they are both enjoying their friendship, soon both serpent and girl realize that he must return to the sea. As any good friend would, the girl supports the serpent's needs, and soon they are parting ways. I'm getting choked up just thinking about it!
Complimented (and moved forward) by Catia Chien's dreamlike illustrations, The Sea Serpent and Me has been a favorite of my Kindergarten crowd for weeks and will certainly be on my shelf of favorites for years to come. This is one of those classic stories of friendship that never goes out of style, and I honestly have to hand it to authors like Slater who don't underestimate what kids are capable of understanding and feeling. I have found that this is a wonderful title to use at the end of the school year for teachers, students, and friends who are parting ways. I just can't decide who needs the comfort more: the students or the teacher.
I've never heard of this one before--I'll look for it!
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