Do you know someone who
has a special kind of connection with animals? My niece, Caroline, is one of
those people.

Animals just adore
her. They trust her completely. Does Caroline have a future in veterinary medicine?
Maybe. But that’s a tall order to put on a third grader, so let’s just say that
interacting with animals is one of her special talents.

If you have someone like
Caroline in your life, then here’s the perfect holiday gift: Animals
Welcome: A Life of Reading, Writing, and Rescue by children’s book
author Peg Kehret. This wonderful memoir describes the many animals Mrs. Kehret
has cared for—pets, strays, foster cats, and even wild creatures—with brief
mentions of how some of them played a role in her novels.