A young girl saves a caterpillar from a jay, and her grandfather helps her to make a home for the larva and butterfly it will become, as he did as a boy. The story describes the steps and time passing with the girl's thoughts. The girl is shown as an old woman at the end, surrounded by butterflies in her garden. A nice touch for a story filled with a sense of awe.

Greg Shed's paintings beautifully illustrate the story. Eve Bunting has written an astounding number of books. Every one I've read has had a different illustrator, and yet so many have this sense of awe - both the text and illustrations.

At the end, there are instructions for raising and releasing a butterfly. Bunting, Shed, and the model for the girl all have raised butterflies.

related-butterflies, appreciating nature, metamorphosis, grandfathers, stories in rhyme
RL=1st-3rd, read aloud to toddlers-1st