Part of Me: Stories of a Louisiana Family (by Kimberly Willis Holt)

Her son, Merle, becomes a trapper, until a horrible accident makes him think twice about what he's doing. His daughter, Annabeth, learns courage from a dead boy, and her son, Kyle, changes his mind about books after acting them out for toddlers.

Kimberly Willis Holt writes gentle little character-driven stories that lyrically convey the rhythms, pace, and quirks of life in the deep South. Like her other books, PART OF ME is a book that only a Southerner could write. It doesn't just describe what a visiting observer could see and hear -- every page is steeped in the languid and sultry cadences, the ancient traditions, and cultural eccentricities of the bayou.

The format -- related short stories crossing four generations -- means that the reader never establishes a deep connection to any one character. Rather, the connection is to a place and a way of life. With its leisurely pace and lack of action, this is not for every child. But for one who has the patience to wait to see what appears around the next bend in the bayou, it can reveal a world few outsiders get to see.