Matine is different from every other child in the world - she is made of sugar candy. And though her nature is as sweet as sugar, she must always be careful: even the hot sun or a walk in the rain might be enough to melt her. When Matine's best friend falls ill, everyone in her tiny village hides the truth from her - they know that her own salt tears might make her melt away forever. But as Matine proves to them all, love and friendship hold surprising powers.

"A lovely original tale." - Kirkus Reviews

"Sweet...combining the Gingerbread Boy and the Velveteen Rabbit." - NY Times Book Review

"Lovely, light-as-air illustrations." - Child Magazine

Written by Monique de Varennes

Illustrated by Leonid Gore

ages 4 - 8 * $16.95

An Anne Schwartz Book
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
ISBN 0-689-85244-4

About this story

The Sugar Child is adapted from a folk tale my grandmother used to tell nearly a hundred years ago. I like to imagine her eight children gathered around her on a cold night in their tiny French Canadian village - a place without phones, cars, or electricity, much like the village where Matine, the Sugar Child, lives. My grandmother would be delighted to know this story is still being told today.

My mother, Madeleine Grandbois (left), with
her sister Gabrielle. Both went on to become
writers, as did their brother Alain.