Orlando's Little-While Friends (Child's Play Library)

Rating:
Summary: Lasting classic
Review: It was a serendipitous moment when I discovered Orlando's Little-While Friends sitting on the bookshelf at my sister's place. I assumed it had been thrown out or given away along with all the other cherished objects of our childhoods. I was yet more surprised to discover the book was still in print. It was over twenty years ago in Canada, as a boy of four or five, that I first read this beautiful story, and its appeal remains strong even today.

Orlando sets off with his parents in his super-shiny-travel-anywhere van for the summer. He doesn't share his parents' happiness, however: He must leave all his cherished friends behind. Will he be lonely? How will he make friends? How will he overcome his shyness? Will he risk everything, push the boat out and find some little-while friends, or will he let his bashfulness get the better of him and hide away from the world? The author explores Orlando's vulnerability, loneliness and how he confronts his fears to make little-while friends. These themes are treated in a way so touchingly human that even I, as a twenty-five year old, could relate.

The scrapbook style, with its many lushly coloured illustrations, is what takes the story the extra distance to make this into a true classic. Its value lies not just in it being great fun, but in exploring in a highly accessible way some very important life issues. Snap this up while it is still in print.