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My 80-year-old mother often told me about a book she had loved as a child. Each page was divided in half so that the top picture on any given page could be paired with the bottom picture of any other page. An elephant's head could be paired with a mouse body and legs. She chuckled each time she talked about the book.
Once she mentioned that she thought the book was put out by the Kellog company in a cereal box. I didn't think Kellogs had been in business that long ago so I forgot about the book for a while.

Imagine my surprise one day when I saw the book from her childhood advertised for sale on e-Bay. By that time her 85th birthday was approaching and a family gathering was planned to celebrate her birthday. I bid on the book, and ended up paying $27 for it. It turned out to be one of the best purchases I ever made.

At her birthday party, my mother was working her way through a pile of gifts when she came to mine. I wish I had taken a picture of the expression on her face when she saw that book. She was so excited and kept insisting it was the same one she had when she was a child. I don't think I ever convinced her that it wasn't.

My mother lived to be 91, and she often brought the book out to show me again how it worked, when I made one of my weekly visits to her. I am so glad that e-Bay was around to make my Mom's dream come true.

Learn more about this author, Jeanne Gibson.
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