I read this book when I was in 3rd grade and it has stayed with me ever since. For years I have wondered where it had gotten off to, continuously haunted by the power of the story and the uncommonly judicious characterization. I was even physically affected by it then, and remembering it today, I cannot help but get shivers. I am gratified to have found it after all these years--this is truly a book that will stay with one forever, provoking much the same reaction, more than a decade later, as when I first read it as a susceptible 8-year-old. I recommend it to any and everyone.