When Violet Died

by Mildred Kantrowitz

Saddened by her pet's death, Eva suddenly thinks of a way to make life go on forever.

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1973

Reviews

[Alisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

another favorite book from nighttime bed routine

[Abby Peskin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about a pair of sisters who realize that their pet bird has died so they decide to hold a funeral for it and invite a lot of their friends. They share a poem and song about their bird, which is kind of cute and shows that both happiness and humor can occur when mourning someone they cared about. However, the end of the book is weird. The girls talk about how nothing lasts forever, even their cat (who they are probably now worried about dying). Then the younger child makes up a plan for how to make things last longer - by having their child have lots and lots of babies. This ending really takes the emphasis away from the main storyline and I'm really unsure about what it's trying to teach about death.