One Morning in Maine

Title: One Morning in Maine
Author: Robert McCloskey
Major Themes: Losing Teeth
Synopsis: When Sal wakes up in the morning with a loose tooth, she learns more about growing up.

One Morning in Maine is sort of a sequel to Blueberries for Sal. It doesn’t have anything to do with Blueberries for Sal, but the main character is Sal. She is now five or six years old, and has a baby sister, Jane. Sal wakes up early one morning and gets started with the day, eagerly anticipating going to Buck’s Harbor with her father. However . . . .

Sal started to brush her teeth, but

“something felt strange! One of her teeth felt loose! … Ma-a-ama! She cried. “One of my teeth is loose! It will hurt and I’ll have to stay in bed! I won’t be able to eat my breakfast and go with Daddy to Buck’s Harbor!”

Her mother explained how baby teeth fall out and are replaced and that it is a normal part of growing up. Sal ate her breakfast and went out to help her father dig clams, and then she and Jane got to go with Daddy across the bay to Buck’s Harbor.

One Morning in Maine is an absolutely delightful story of a day in the life of a little girl. The pictures, line drawings, are wonderful, and Sal’s parents lovingly guide their little girls as they start growing up. Anyone with young children should have this book!

No warnings!