Lucia's Red Ball

About the Book

Children learn and discover the world through playing. How nice is it to have a ball: it can roll and bounce, one can throw it or play soccer. A ball helps the child to develop co-ordination and skill in body movement. Lucia has a red ball and loves to play with it. She puts it on the wall of the terrace and gives it a push. Something Lucia didn’t expect happens: the ball bounces off the wall and assumes a life of its own. It bounces down the steps, becoming smaller and smaller. Because Lucia is a young child she can’t run after her toy, and thus experiences a feeling of loss. On the steps of the stairs are different animals: a small snake, a cat, and a dog. Looking at the illustrations the young reader gets an understanding of how animals behave. They simply can’t catch the ball, so it ends up on the waves of the ocean. Even the colourful fish can’t do anything to help. Luckily, Lucia’s father is out on the water on his boat. He has a net to catch the ball and returns the favourite toy to his daughter. Because Lucia has gone through a range of emotions throughout the story, she is able to think of how she can avoid a similar experience in the future.

About the Author

Armine Bonn was born in Stuttgart in 1958. During her childhood she spent a lot of time at the zoo, fascinated by all the different species of animals that exist. Her dream was to become an animal caretaker. Plans changed, however, so she studied sports and dance instead. After graduation she worked in the department of education. Shortly thereafter Armine Bonn met her husband and moved to Basel where her three daughters were born. Over the years Armine Bonn was blessed with the opportunity to travel the world both alone and with her family. North America, Mexico, Costa Rica and China are among the many countries Armine Bonn visited. In 2003 she returned to Germany. She often reflected on her past experiences. At one point the little girl in her awakened and she started to write stories for children.