All the reasons why The Ogress and the Orphans must be a classroom read-aloud

Oh, her writing!  Kelly Barnhill knocks it out of the park with this story.  If you still have time for a read-aloud, please read this one to your students.  If not, put it on your list for next year.

This is a story about the power of kindness.  The power of dazzling lies.  And what happens to the foundation of a community when they believe those lies.

Yes, there is an ogress.  She's nice.

There's also a dragon.  In disguise.

There are also crows.  And a dog.

And there are 15 children in an orphanage who are clear-eyed, like many children can be, and who are cared for with lots of love by Matron and Myron.  The children wonder about why people believe certain things and why they treat each other the way they do.  For the children, the answers seem simple.  But not so much for the adults.

The ogress is kind and loves to grow vegetables, fruits, and bake.  She also loves to sneak out at night and leave gifts on all the neighbors' doorsteps.

But when she gets falsely accused of something, and the mayor encourages the falsehoods, it's left to the children to prove the townspeople wrong.

Does kindness win in the end?  (Spoiler alert: of course it does.)  And that's why you should read it to your students.  It is a book about kindness, how we treat our neighbors, and the power of clear thinking.