Books by Bettina Ehrlich

A delightful story about ice cream and the importance of always telling the truth.Miss Patricia Higgins's painting holiday in Italy isn't going according to plan. She'd hoped to paint many outdoor scenes in the picturesque fishing village but as soon as her easel is set up, the local children gather around asking her to paint their portraits. Hoping to avoid the crowds, Miss Higgins goes out very early one morning. This time she encounters only one child, Arturo 'Sardines' Camuffo, who says, rather surprisingly, that he doesn't want a portrait of himself. He'd rather Miss Higgins painted a picture of his friend, the bronze angel sitting atop the church spire. How does the son of a poor local fisherman become friends with a huge statue of an angel? For the price of three ice cream cones, Miss Higgins is about to find out.First published by Oxford University Press in 1967, Sardines and the Angel is the third in a series of vintage illustrated Bettina Ehrlich children's books, proudly reproduced by For Pity Sake Publishing. This book is preceded by Francesco and Francesca (2018) and The Goat Boy (2019).

Toni is a cheerful, obedient ten year-old Austrian boy who's afraid of thunderstorms. There's nothing unusual about that - lots of people are scared of lightning and thunder. But this is a particular problem for Toni because, you see, he is a goat boy. Every day he tends his father's prized herd of goats, all alone, high up on the mountain that towers over their small village.One summer afternoon there's a terrible storm and Toni, mad with fear, abandons his herd and flees the mountain pasture. Three of his beloved goats are lost that day and his father is very angry, saying that Toni is no longer fit to be the family's goat boy.Ashamed and fearful of losing his job, Toni is given one more chance to prove himself. But when the next thunderstorm hits, something miraculous happens.

Francesco is a poor Italian boy who has no shoes. One day, while gazing in the window of a shoe shop, he sees a beautiful young girl smiling back at him. This is Francesca and he cannot forget her.Winter comes and with it the Grand Carnival in Milan. Francesco dresses as a brigand with hand-me-down shoes that are too big for him. But in a bid to impress Francesca, he swaps costumes with a red velvet prince with matching leather shoes.Mayhem follows and it seems Francesco will miss the Carnival fun altogether. Will he also lose his beloved Francesca?