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An Invisible Thread Christmas Story

I recommend this one with reservations.  Consider your audience.  It tells the true story of a boy and woman in New York who struck up a friendship after young Alex asked for spare change on a street corner, and Laura shared a meal with him instead.  They began having weekly meals together and Laura invites Alex to spend Christmas with her and her family.  It’s written from Alex’s point of view, but the focus seems to be on how kind and generous and wonderful Laura is.  As a story to share with middle-class kids to encourage them to reach out to those less fortunate, showing that even small acts can build strong relationships and make big differences, I think it’s great.  But I wonder how students who are living in poverty will feel reading it, wondering why they haven’t had someone swoop down and offer them all these things?  For that matter, the story tells us that Alex has two sisters and a grandmother and mom, but there’s no mention of any of them being invited to participate in Laura’s generosity? One wonders how they felt about that.