The Man Who Saved Books - Lynn Plourde - ★★★★.½

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AUTHOR: Lynn Plourde
ILLUSTRATOR: Mary Beth Owens
GENRE: Children's Picture Book
PUBLICATION DATE: July 1, 2022
RATING: 4.5 stars.

As a reader, I certainly expected to love the story of a man who ‘saved books’. What I didn’t expect was to see how unusual the story would be.

Mr. Pottle is the dump man in a little village in Maine. He loves the treasures he finds in his dump yard. He savages whatever treasures he can with tender love and care. But his favourite items are the books. He simply can’t figure out why people want to dump books and hence he offers his services to fix the books. When people still don’t listen, Mr. Pottle has a great idea – he begins a dump library. If you thought this story would now proceed in a predictable way, you’re totally wrong. But you need to read the book to find out what happens.

The book brings out a variety of messages. Other than the obvious love for books and the need to value them as treasures, it also raises the themes of kindness, empathy, friendship and neighbourliness.

This is a chapter book for early readers, aimed at little ones between the ages of 5-8. The language is perfect for this age group.

The illustrations are more like pretty paintings that depict Mr. Pottle’s life beautifully. They have a very old-worldly charm to them and suit the story perfectly. I’ve never seen a dump yard look as pretty as it does in this little book.

Definitely recommended for all little ones who love their books as much as Mr. Pottle did.

My thanks to Down East Books, National Book Network, and Edelweiss+ for the DRC of “The Man Who Saved Books”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

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