Just One Gift

Exploring themes of community and gratitude, Newbery Medalist Linda Sue Park captures the diverse voices of a lively classroom discussion in a thought-provoking story told through linked poems: Love that Dog meets Seedfolks!

The assignment: If you could give someone special in your life a present—just one gift—who would you choose, and what would it be? Discuss. Certain students know their answers right away. A few find their answers more slowly. And while some responses spark lively conversation, others are revealed only in the privacy of journal pages. But all of the choices are as heartfelt as they are unexpected. 

In accessible verse that highlights transformative moments of connection, Linda Sue Park celebrates the ways—big and small, obvious and unanticipated—our lives are enriched by the people we encounter. Robert Sae-Heng contributes black-and-white art to this eloquent stand-alone read that is also a welcomed companion to the popular The One Thing You’d Save.

"An easy-to-digest, poignant presentation that engages readers [and] invites readers to reflect deeply about the needs and desires of people in their lives."

- Publishers Weekly

“A class of kids consider their communities [in] a well-paced, insightful exercise in observation and empathy.”

- Kirkus Reviews

"A deeply humane exploration of gratitude, connection, and moral imagination [and] an exceptional read-aloud." - School Library Journal