#3 The Little Chapel That Stood

Title: The Little Chapel That Stood

Author: A.B. Curtis

Illustrator: Mirto Golino

Publishing Company: Old Castle Publishing

Copyright Date: 2003

# of Pages: 30

Genre/Category: Picture Books

St. Paul's Chapel

     Last March, I visited New York City and saw the  9/11 Memorial. While I was there, I picked up The Little Chapel That Stood, and I just had to have it for my future classroom. I chose to blog about this book because it is one of my favorite picture books. The Little Chapel That Stood  is written in a poetry form, and it tells about the St. Paul Chapel that stands across the street from where the World Trade Centers were. It is the story of 9/11 and the heroes that arose during that time. The St. Paul 's Chapel was not damaged at all during the attacks on the World Trade Center, so it was used by rescue personnel who tried to help the people left trapped in the wreckage. The Little Chapel That Stood also reminds us of the sacrifices of the passengers on Flight 93 and the attack on the Pentagon. It leaves the reader realizing that no matter what happens, we still live in a wonderful country that will rise above, and it also instills the moral that every good deed is important no matter how small it seems. 

This is me holding the book in front 
of the memorial wall.

     The illustrations in The Little Chapel That Stood are phenomenal. The pictures look like they were painted with watercolors, and they are very bright. The illustrator uses almost an entire two-page spread on each picture, and she uses a small margin to draw a boarder. These boarders are sometimes used to foreshadow what happens next. On the page before the attacks, the boarder is of airplanes flying through clouds. The pictures in this book really enhance the story that is being told. 

     This book has a few difficult words in it, and it is a sensitive topic. I would recommend this book for children in grades 2-8. It is a positive way to introduce the terrorist attacks on our country to younger children, but because it is poetry and has words that are suitable for older children, it could also be used when discussing the attacks with older students. The Little Chapel That Stood could be integrated into a history lesson since it is a true story about the events that occurred on 9/11. I think it would be wonderful to use this book in a poetry lesson for older students because it is not all simple poetry. The rhythm changes throughout the book. It could even be used as a geography lesson. It discusses the Twin Tower attacks, Flight 93, and the attack on the Pentagon. The teacher could use a map to show where each of these places are, or the teacher could even measure the distance between them.