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out a beautiful book and an old blanket. The book was his pride and joy. He said it was a gift from his grandfather. He would invite his host’s children to join him near some tree or on a grassy spot, and he would sit down on the blanket. It seemed the children of the village were watching for this moment, and they would come running from all directions. The children, even some in their teens, would gather around, the little ones sitting and the older ones standing. Usually the smallest ones would sit on his lap. He made sure to turn the book around now and then so that everyone could see the pictures. Their little faces would strain to see every detail. As the sun was setting in the sky, he would read of princesses, knights, dragons, and kings. When the stories ended, he would send them home with small bits of sweets in their tattered pockets. Alexander loved children and often told Louise he always wanted a little brother or sister, but his parents couldn’t have any more after he was born. He had said he’d adopt every child in the villages if he could. Louise thought that, in some ways, he already had. One thing that saddened Alexander was that so few of the Bernodians could read, and books were so hard to come by. He said he hoped someday every one of his people would have a book. Louise could remember how her heart had been touched the first night Alexander sat down to read with the children of a small town. Even with what happened in the 78