The Secret

About the Book





THE SECRET is a fable about a little girl who, in a dream, is seeking the secret to a good life. In her dream, the girl is walking in a forest, where she encounters a lion, a cheetah, a squirrel, and a spider. She asks each of these creatures in turn what the secret is to a good life, and each creature gives a different answer. After waking up and considering their answers, the girl realizes that the answer given by one of the creatures in her dream resonates with her. Can you guess which creature, and what the answer was?











About the Author





Born in Israel (then called "Palestine"), Judith Weinshall Liberman came to the United States in 1947 to pursue higher education. She earned four American university degrees including two in law, a J. D. from the University of Chicago Law School and an LL. M. from the University of Michigan Law School. After settling in the Boston area in 1956, she studied art and creative writing. Beginning in the early 1960s, and for four decades thereafter, Ms. Liberman created numerous series of artworks. Her art has been widely exhibited, and is represented in the collection of museums and other public institutions. During her long career in visual art, Ms. Liberman wrote several books, among them some picture books. Her book THE BIRD'S LAST SONG (Addison-Wesley, 1976), which she also illustrated, won a citation as one of the "fabulous books of the year." Since 2012, she has published several additional picture books, including ICE CREAM SNOW, THE LITTLE FAIRY, COLOR IN OUR WORLD, THE VERY OLD PAINTER AND HER HUSBAND, HAIFA, ANGEL'S PUPPIES, THE GIANT HOUSE, THE BEE AND THE BUTTERFLY, THE MOUNTAIN, THE TUNNEL, THE OLD DOLL, THE LITTLE SONGBIRD, FIFTEEN FABLES, TWELVE MORE FABLES, THE BIRD WHO WENT TO HEAVEN, A PARAKEET FOR ERIC, TALES OF HUMAN FOIBLES, IN THE MILITARY CEMETERY, THE GIRL AND THE PIGEONS, MORE TALES OF HUMAN FOIBLES, MICHAEL AND THE FLAG, WHAT WILL I BE?, IF I HAD THE POWER, IF I WERE RICH, LUCY AND THE SNOWMAN, THE WHIRLPOOL, THE RIDGE, IF I HAD A LITTLE SISTER, GRANDMA'S GLASSES, and IF I WERE A MOM. Judith Weinshall Liberman's archives can be found in the Arts Department of the Boston Public Library and at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art.











About the Illustrator





THE SECRET is the eighth book on which Judith Weinshall Liberman, the author, has collaborated with Cindy Nguyen, a Gau Family Studio illustrator. The two had previously collaborated on THE LITTLE SONGBIRD, on THE BIRD WHO WENT TO HEAVEN, on THE GIRL AND THE PIGEONS, on WHAT WILL I BE?, on LUCY AND THE SNOWMAN, on IF I HAD A LITTLE SISTER, and on IF I WERE A MOM. Since Ms. Liberman did not feel that, in view of her deteriorated eyesight, she could do justice to illustrating THE SECRET herself, she turned to Gau Family Studio to create the illustrations under the author's guidance. In the present book, Ms. Nguyen beautifully captures the spirit of the story and of its characters.