The Angel of Mill Street Book Review

Weller, Frances Ward. 1998. The Angel of Mill Street. New York: Philomel Books.

The book, The Angel of Mill Street, by Frances Ward Weller is about a young girl awaiting the arrival of her uncle on Christmas Eve. Her uncle has a bad leg and has to use a cane to get around. He has to tread through a blustery winter storm in order to get to his nieces house for Christmas Eve. He has trouble making it to the house and everyone in the house is worried when he does not show up after a period of time. Somehow a big black dog, “his guardian angel”, helps him find his way. He makes it to the house with the help of the dog. When he gets there the dog runs off never to be seen or heard of again.

I thought that this was not a good story for children to hear about disabilities. The uncle in the story has a bad leg and must use a cane which is his disability but it would be a hard story for children to comprehend. Each page is filled with a lot of words which makes the story seem to drag on. Also, the book is about an uncle coming home for Christmas Eve which would not be relatable for some children that so not celebrate that holiday. This was also not a good story for children because the child in this story was not as close to the person with the disability as to have to deal with it everyday.