Granny Torelli Makes Soup

I've been trying to blog about once a month but having just read Granny Torelli Makes Soup (and loved it), plus this is, conveniently, almost smack dab in the middle of the month, I'm going to try to blog twice a month.  Just so I can write about this wonderful book.

The two-part (Soup and Pasta) story is about a girl, Rosie, and a fight she has with her best friend-from-forever, Bailey, who lives next door.  In the first part, Rosie's Granny Torelli is over making soup while Rosie's parents are late at work.  While they cook, Granny tells Rosie stories of a childhood friend in Italy to help Rosie sort through her Bailey problem.  The second part tells of Bailey, Rosie and her beloved Granny making pasta while they work through another complication in their friendship with Granny's marvelous stories and wisdom.  Of course, everything ends up happily, and (as seems to be the case in Sharon Creech's books- with the notable exception of the tearjerking Walk Two Moons) even better than the reader hoped.

I feel compelled to describe the book as "heartwarming;" it's the perfect way to sum up its charms.    It is feather-light with snippets of depth so delightful, I thought I should write them down!  I am also partial to books that deal with food and Granny Torelli works it in so perfectly, you hardly notice that you've begun to smell the chicken soup cooking while you're reading the book.  The issues are relatable and are conveyed in an ageless manner; it's something that could apply to anyone whether they were fifteen or fifty-five.  It's told in a lyrical style- almost poetic- and even takes several unexpected turns in a story that seems almost familiar in its comfortableness.  

If books could be made into afghans, this is a book I'd choose to wrap around me on cold nights...