I ate my Littmus Lozenge slow. It tasted good. It tasted like root beer and strawberry and something else I didn't have a name for, something that made me feel kind of sad. I looked over at Amanda. She was sucking on her candy and thinking hard.
"Do you like it?" Miss Franny asked me.
"Yes ma'am," I told her.
"What about you Amanda? Do you like the Littmus Lozenge?"
"Yes ma'am," she said. "But it makes me think of things I feel sad about."
I wondered what in the world Amanda Wilkson had to feel sad about. She wasn't new to town. She had a mama and a daddy. I had seen them with her in church.
"There's a secret ingredient in there," Miss Franny said.
"I know it," I told her. "I can taste it. What is it?"
"Sorrow," Miss Franny said. "Not everyone can taste it. Children, especially, seem to have a hard time knowing it's there."
"I taste it," I said.
- Because of Winn-Dixie
by Kate DiCamillo
Oh my gosh, I remember this book so well! I read it a loooong time ago, but I could never forget that cover. :)
Reply DeleteI read that book over and over again as a kid! I love that you featured it.
Reply DeleteI didn't grow up with this book, but I read some chapters out loud for story time when I was subbing once. Had to finish it during my lunch break!
Reply DeleteThat was me too; we read it in the class I student taught at. Her books The Miraculous Journey of Edward Toulane and The Tale of Desperoux and the The White Elephant are all great too.
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