Elizabeth and the Potato Dolly
is a
nostalgic look
at yesteryear too precious to sweep into the dustbin
of history. It is sure to
charm
all
lovers of American
a from ages three to one hundred and three.
Unique
among pioneer stories with its reenactment at a
living history museum
, the artfully done
photographs
bring
authenticity
to the story.
Elizabeth is sent to the
root cellar
to fetch
potatoes
for her Pappa’s dinner. When she doesn’t return promptly, her mother repeatedly calls but “Elizabeth does not answer and Elizabeth does not come.” This
parallelism
tickles young readers as does Mama’s elongated calling, “Eliiiiii-zabeth.” The children become intrigued to know what has become of Elizabeth. Since the story lends itself to
reenactmen
t, it works extremely well in a venue where children in the audience can become
involved
as the characters in the story.