This is a picture book. It tells a story entirely in pictures. The story is about an old man and three children. There are many meanings in the pictures, which you probably will think about and talk about. You can "read the pictures" in your own words. This book began when an artist heard some children talking. This is what the children said:
"Ellen! Charlie! I have a penny! A lucky penny!"
"A lucky penny? Where did you get it?"
"The old man on our block took it from his pocket and gave it to me a while ago. He found it on a fishing boat when he was just a boy. He has carried it in his pocket ever since."
"It must be old!"
"Yes, it's very old. He said it always brings good luck. Like the day he was shipwrecked and finally swam to shore. And the time he found an oyster with a pearl in its shell."
"And the night he found a baby robin huddled by his door..."
"I like that old man, don't you?"
"And the luckiest thing is—he likes us!"
The pictures that follow are the artist's story of the old man and the children.
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