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Our library community lost a ray of brightness with the passing of a lovely woman, coworker and friend earlier this week. She was full of humor and compassion and had a love for children that was so genuine that I for one wished to be a child all over again. She would lighten your day with greetings like “Hello, Beautiful�� and her laughter would ring out at the silliest of jokes and shenanigans. Her passion for books, especially children’s books, was infectious. She was known to read parts of her favorites out loud to us grownups, and it was a joy to relive that little piece of youth every now and then when a day might not have gotten off to the greatest start. I’d walked past this children’s chapter book sitting on the holds shelf with her name on it for a few days and was curious to find out what she would think of it. I’d read an adult novel by Anne Michaels titled Fugitive Pieces several years ago, and the beauty of Michaels�� writing has stayed with me. When we received the sad news that our dear friend had unexpectedly passed, I couldn’t resist checking this out for myself. I needed to see what she had been looking forward to. She would have adored this whimsical little novel!

“Some adventures are so small, you hardly know they’ve happened�� Other adventures are so big and last so long, you might forget they are adventures at all �� like growing up. And some adventures are just the right size �� fitting into a single, magical day. And these are the sort of adventures Miss Petitfour had.��

The reader is whisked away on Miss Petitfour’s favorite tea party tablecloth along with her sixteen cats. The kitties have both grand and clever names like Grigorovitch and Moutarde and Captain Catkin. They have all sorts of adventures and run into bits of trouble, but with luck and cunning and teamwork on their side, things turn out just right �� with some surprises along the way! I love the little messages tucked inside this book, and I’m sure Miss Jenny, as we so fondly called our friend, would too!

“Sometimes things work out differently than you expect, and sometimes that’s when the best things happen. And sometimes a jumble straightens everything out in the end.��

“Sometimes a story depends on finding something �� a key to a secret door, a magic ring, a hidden passageway. Sometimes you have to look down to find it (like your slipper under the bed) and sometimes you have to look up to find it (like a balloon caught in a tree) and sometimes, if you’re really lucky, what you’re looking for, finds you.��

Sweet lady, I hope your soul rests easy and is whisked away on its own little adventure to find exactly what it’s been looking for.