Phileas's Fortune

In de Lestrade's allegorical world, words must be purchased and swallowed to be spoken, which means wealthy bully Oscar can buy grand declarations while quiet Phileas scrapes by on discarded scraps. When Phileas gives his most precious saved word to the girl he cares about, the story makes its point without spelling it out: sincerity outweighs eloquence, and the right word at the right moment is worth everything. Valeria Docampo's illustrations are stunning — rich and dreamlike in a way that perfectly suits the invented world. Very young readers will likely need an adult to help unpack the allegory, and the resolution is brief. But as a springboard for conversations about honesty and self-expression, it is quietly wonderful.