Willow has a voice “as soft and shy as a secret.” Classmates ask her to play but turn away when they don’t hear her response (“I’d love to”). She gets orange juice when she asked for apple, and misses being line leader when the teacher doesn’t hear her say, “I haven’t had a turn.” Willow’s dad assures her that one day her “big strong voice . . . will wiggle its way out.” Determined to make her words louder, Willow creates a magic microphone with cardboard, glitter, and glue. The prop gives her the confidence to speak up, until she finally realizes she doesn’t need it anymore. While Willow’s transformation over the course of a single day is a little quick, she’s a protagonist many kids will relate to, and her solution to her problem shows a genuine creative spark. The illustrations have an appealing, childlike quality with their black outlines and bursts of color. (Ages 4–7)

When Willow speaks, her words slip out as soft and shy as a secret. At school, her barely audible whisper causes her no end of troubles. But Willow is as resourceful as she is quiet, and she fashions a magic microphone from items she finds in the recycling bin.

But Willow's clever invention is only a temporary solution. How will this quiet little girl make herself heard?