Sarah, Plain and Tall

The second book in the series that began with the Newbery Medal-winning Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan. My mother, Sarah, doesn't love the prairie. She tries, but she can't help remembering what she knew first. Sarah came to the prairie from Maine to marry Papa. But that summer, a drought turned the land dry and brown. Fires swept across the fields and coyotes came to the well in search of water. So Sarah took Anna and Caleb back east, where they would be safe. Papa stayed behind. He would not leave his land. Maine was beautiful, but Anna missed home, and Papa. And as the weeks went by, she began to wonder what would happen if the rains never came. Would she and Caleb and Sarah and Papa ever be a family again?

Anna has done something terrible. She has given me her journal to fill. In Anna′s journal the words walk across the page like bird prints in the mud. But it is hard for me. It is hard for me to find things to write about. "It′s your job now," Anna says as she hands Caleb her journals, asking him to continue writing the family story. But Sarah, Jacob, Anna, Caleb, and their new little sister, Cassie, have already formed a family, and Caleb fears there will be nothing left to write about. But that is before Cassie discovers a mysterious old man in the barn and everything changes. Everyone is excited about the arrival of a new family member except for Jacob, who holds a bitter grudge. Only the special love of Caleb, and the gift he offers, can help to mend the pain of the past. Caleb′s Story continues the saga begun by the Newbery Medal-winning Sarah, Plain And Tall and its sequel, Skylark, spinning a tale of love, forgiveness, and the ties that bind a family together. Ages 8-10

Cassie spends her days watching Grandfather and Caleb in the barn, looking out at Papa working the fields, spying on her mother, Sarah, feeding the goslings. She's an observer, a writer, a storyteller. Everything is as it should be. But change is inevitable, even on the prairie. Something new is expected, and Sarah says it will be the perfect gift. Cassie isn't so sure. But just as life changes, people change too. And Cassie learns that unexpected surprises can bring great joy.

Jack leans back on Grandfather's shoulder. Aunt Mattie's knitting needles click in the dark. The moon rises. The candle flickers in the gentle prairie wind. I close my eyes to keep everything there. Could anything be more perfect than a prairie wedding? Cassie Witting doesn't think so, for her sister Anna's wedding brings two lovebirds together, aunts from faraway Maine, a long white dress with a wedding veil, dancing under a clear blue sky, and a world that smells of roses. As the Witting family comes together for this most special day, Cassie sees that life brings the change of seasons, brother Jack on Grandfather's lap, joy, sorrow, and a special dance only Grandfather does.