Afternoon of the Elves by Janet Taylor Lisle, is the story of a young girl named Hillary Lenox, who becomes fascinated by her neighbor, Sara-Kate Connolly. Sara-Kate was held back in fifth-grade and seems to live in her own distant world, ostracized from society. Sara-Kate invites Hillary to see a secret village of elves in the woods of her backyard. Sara-Kate explains that the elves live in tiny homes made of sticks, leaves and stones. The two girls soon become friends, even though Hillary’s other friends and even her own parents disapprove of their friendship. Hillary is captivated by Sara-Kate’s theories about the magical elf world. This leads Hillary to see life in a new way.  Hillary also learns that Sara-Kate’s life is much sadder and more difficult than she could have imagined.

I appreciate the way this book portrays the complex connection between childhood imagination and the painful realities of life. This book deals with challenging themes involving friendship and loneliness. It teaches that many people suffer from hardships that are hidden from the rest of society. We can learn to have compassion for people who have lives that are much different than our own and more difficult than we realize. This book shows that we should be kind and friendly to everyone.

This book seems to blur the line between fantasy and reality. The elves add a sense of mystery and suspense to the story. In some ways this book can seem unsettling, because of the severe hardship and trauma that it describes. However, I appreciate this deep exploration into the minds and relationships of children dealing with the harsh and complex realities of life. This book is very intriguing and I would recommend it to both young and old readers alike.