The Bell in the Bridge

“Bong, bong, bong” and then another “bong.” It is almost like an echo, but with an extra “bong.” Charlie hears a reply almost every time he hits the bridge with a stone. In Bell in the Bridge, Charlie wonders if the response is just an echo or someone responding to his message. Some other things that Charlie likes doing while he is at his grandparents’ house are: playing in ponds, fishing, and lining up stones on the bridge and pushing them over one by one. The book The Bell in the Bridge is beautifully written by Ted Kooser. But both the writing and the illustrations are a bit unexciting. There is not any dialogue until page 11. Even though Charlie goes to the country for two weeks, this book seemed very short. And I wish there was some more detail on the characters. On the bright side, there is pretty water-colored artwork. If you want to relax and be calmed, then you have found the right book. I think the audience of this book is ages six and up. I thought it was nice to run across a book that does not have a action plot but is not too boring.