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From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)

A tender picture story of a grandmother, mother and young daughter saving their money to replace a favorite chair lost in a fire. Bright water color illustrations within imaginative, decorative borders capture the upbeat tone of the story as a jar becomes filled with coins and the family's dream chair finally selected, brought home and enjoyed! Sheer joy! (Honor Book, CCBC Mock Caldecott Straw Vote) (4-9 years)

CCBC Choices 1982 © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 1982. Used with permission.

From School Library Journal

February 1, 2017

EMPATHY; RESPONSIBLE DECISION-MAKING; SELF-MANAGEMENT

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From School Library Journal

January 1, 2010
PreS-Gr 3-This collection includes stories by Vera B. Williams about Rosa and her family"A Chair for My Mother" (1982), "Something Special for Me" (1983), "Music, Music for Everyone" (1984), and "A Chair for Always" (2009)plus "Cherries and Cherry Pits" (1986, all Greenwillow). In the first title, a young African-American girl tells of the sorrow of losing her home and belongings to a fire and the jar in which the family places all of their loose change to save for a lovely, soft armchair. In the first four tales, the chair is a character, symbolizing warmth, love, security, and family to the young narrator. In "A Chair for Always", Rosa expresses her attachment to the now aging chair when her mother and grandmother begin thinking it might be time to find a new one. Martha Plimpton perfectly captures the tenderness and joy of these stories. This winning collection celebrates family and the power of hope."Deanna Romriell, Salt Lake City Public Library, UT"

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

From AudioFile Magazine

The bouncy rhythms of the introductory composition set the mood for Martha Plimpton's lively narration of a story about a cheerful young girl and her optimistic mother and grandmother. With her youthful voice, Plimpton's bubbly reading captures a family who eagerly saves coins for a new chair after a fire has destroyed their home and furnishings. This is a layered family listen. Adults will admire the girl's waitress mother, who dreams up a playful solution for their loss, and the daughter who worries about her mother's tired feet. Children are more likely to focus on Plimpton's happy tones as Williams describe the fun of counting money into a giant jar and going to four furniture stores to find the chair, the most perfect chair in the world, the one "we were all dreaming of." S.W. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine