There is a lot to say about this book, so let’s start by saying it’s delightful.

Picking the thing I liked about it most … I’m a sucker for a travelogue. Stick me in a book and take me to a different country and I’m done. You can pick me up when the plane lands. This was a travelogue for children. I could imagine reading this as a youngster and being captivated by it. I love the idea of little people reading this book and being inducted into a love of places, culture, and other travelogues to engage them for life.

After that, this book is a beautiful melding of ideas, all with a moral guide and a lesson about tolerance that children shouldn’t worry about, but enjoy the fabulous story and simply absorb the meaning. We learn about people from different walks of life through Lana’s eyes. She relates their world to hers and finds comparisons to the wonder in their country to similarities in hers.

What a little superstar she is. Lana can walk up to a stranger and strike up, not just a conversation, but a lasting friendship. As adults when do we lose that?

Oh my, the food. A town that smells of chocolate, and a delicious description of fondue. When an author makes you hungry, that’s description.

The book is for children but it doesn’t dumb down for them or condescend to them. We mix cultures, genders and ages. Lana connected a lonely young adult lady with other adults. She taught her a valuable lesson, and we, the readers, learn that if we listen to them, children can teach us, too.

I read this book in less than an hour and thoroughly enjoyed it.  

I highly recommend this to every parent of a child with a curious mind. It’s stunning. Although it’s written for children, I enjoyed it on merit and was transported.  

                                                                                     ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐