Melanie and the Magic Bubble

Christy Conte is a Toronto-based freelance writer.

Melanie is bored and tired of her toys; she’s feeling “mumfy” and
doesn’t know what to do with herself. Little does she realize just how
much her life will change when elderly Mrs. Huggins hands her a bottle
of “very special bubbles.”

Written and illustrated by Mary Houghton Docksteader, Melanie and the
Magic Bubble is the story of a little girl’s wondrous trip as she
floats inside a shimmering bubble. Looking at her neighborhood through
the sphere’s delicate walls, Melanie sees beauty in the most ordinary
of things: apples on a tree are splendid, round, and rosy; sunlight
dances off the graceful wings of a butterfly. Docksteader’s
descriptions are wonderful in a lovely, old-fashioned sort of way, and
will encourage children to look at the world around them with a new eye.
Lovely, too, are the richly detailed pencil drawings that accompany the
text. Docksteader is an accomplished artist known primarily for her
pastel studies of children.

Though imbued with a certain political incorrectness that will surely
(though sadly) not pass unnoticed by members of the streetproof
generation (“Why is that girl taking that bottle from the lady without
telling her mommy?”), this is a refreshing adventure tale that will
probably appeal most to children ages 3 to 6. Recommended.