A Perfect Friend

Still grieving over the death of his mother, 11-year-old Ben finds solace in the special relationship he forms with an elephant in a visiting circus.

A Moving Fable For Readers Of All Ages -- From National Book Critics Circle Award-Winning Author Reynolds Price

"Ben Barks loved elephants long before he'd seen one. He sometimes wondered how that love started...."

It's been a whole year since Ben's mother died, and nothing has soothed his broken heart -- except thinking about elephants, those magnificent creatures his mother loved too. Imagining their awesome grace always calms him in a way that his sad father and closest friends never can. When a one-ring circus comes to Ben's small town, he discovers Sala, an elephant who survived a wicked trainer's abuses. And soon, their powerful bond becomes a miraculous healer -- and gives Ben renewed hope for the future.