The Most Beautiful Place in the World Paperback – 25 May 1993

As a traveler who has been to the "Most Beautiful Place in the World" and agrees that it is, I highly recommend this book to teachers and lovers of children's lit everywhere. I use this story of poverty and the importance of education in my 5th grade classroom as a shared text from which we write literary essays.It is the story of a young boy, whose mom abandons him for her new husband who does not want kids. His grandma takes care of him, but somehow forgets to enroll him in school. It is a heartbreaking tale, and one which I can barely read aloud without sobbing. It evokes compassion in my students every year, and provides great discussion fodder. It can easily be read by an on level 2nd grader, and any adult could find lessons to take away from it.

This story is a little sad dealing with child abandonment and some other issues so be aware of these before sharing with a young child. It is a great story about perseverance and helps one walk in another's shoes.

I wanted a story about small town Guatemala that wasn't too miserable but didn't ignore the poverty. I'd read this to the children in my life.

Nice little story. Gift for next generation American-Guatemalan children

This book got my students emotionally imvested in this boy’s experience.