If you listen by Charlotte Zolotow illustrated by Stefano Vitale

"If you listen hard you'll feel someone far away sending love to you."

"The little girl's father had been away a long time."

I love that we are left to think about why. Is dad away for work? Has dad sadly died? Has dad left the family because of a divorce? Whatever the reason mum suggests there is a way to keep dad close even though he is not here.

"If I can't see him, or hear him, or feel his hugs, how can I know he loves me when he isn't here?"

Her mum tells the little girl to stop and listen. They can hear the church bells even though they cannot see the actual church. Or you hear foghorn of a ship far out at sea or a dog barking over in the hills. 

"Or you're sitting alone in the living room not thinking about anything at all and one petal falls of a rose in the vase on the coffee table."

Bookseller description: This loving tale about loss from two-time Caldecott Honor winner Charlotte Zolotow is a gentle, reassuring approach to a subject that's always challenging for parents to discuss with children. In it, a mother comforts her daughter about the absence of the child's father by explaining that if she listens hard, she'll feel him far away sending love to her.

Charlotte Zolotow (1915-2013) wrote over 70 books. The 1980 edition of If you listen had a different illustrator: Marc Simont. My newer copy is from 2002. You can see inside this book here. 

I picked this book up at a recent charity book sale. Part of my mind, when I search through all the boxes of books at these fairs, is thinking about very special books I had in my former school library.  

Here is another book by Charlotte Zolotow also illustrated by Stefano Vitale: