Echo By: Pam Munoz Ryan

If you haven't yet read this classic, make sure you grab a copy for the holiday break or to read aloud in class and let your students escape to another world and time. Echo is a story intertwined with love, grit, loyalty and friendship. The story is made up of three fast paced stories rooted in Historical Fiction all the while surrounded by an overarching fairy tale. Bookpage.com describes the beginning of this story very eloquently. 

"The first is a fairy tale about a boy named Otto who becomes lost in a German forest. He is rescued by three mysterious maidens who happen to be characters in a book that he has just bought from a gypsy. This gypsy also gives Otto a unique harmonica that has special powers. “When you play it,” the maidens explain, “you breathe in and out, just as you would to keep your body alive. Have you ever considered that one person might play the mouth harp and pass along her strength and vision and knowledge?” Indeed, this instrument has amazing “pay it forward” abilities." 

And so sets the tone for the three stories to follow and how this magical harmonica changes their lives. A perfect read aloud and a perfect book to snuggle up with on your own, for all ages and all walks of the world :)