Whispers from Children's Hearts By Lisa Haisha Risa Publications (2006) Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (3/06)

"There are not seven wonders of the world in the eyes of a child. There are seven million.” - Walt Streightiff

Streightiff's quote starts off Lisa Haisha's book "Whispers from Children's Hearts” and I can't imagine a better way it could have started. During her travels, Haisha spoke to more than 250 children ages four through nine from Australia, China, France, Iraq, Peru, Singapore, and the United States. Her visits took her to schools, orphanages, hospitals, restaurants, parks and streets. Every child she spoke to was as different from each other as were their cultures and environment. Yet, each child has something in common - honesty.

For example,

"Is God fair? Why or why not?”

"Yes because I talk to him every night and he listens to me even when my parents don't.” Nicole, 8, Australia "Yes, she's fair, sneaky but fair.” Keiko, 6, Japan "No, because my sister died because we couldn't get her to a doctor in time because he lives so far away and we had to walk.” Anupam, 7, Nepal.

"Who in the world would you most want to meet?”

"Your president because I wrote him a letter and he didn't write back.” Flaca, 9, Mexico "Buddha, because he helps me when I ask for advice. I not sure how he puts it there.” Xinhua, 8, Macau "Martin Luther King. He put the whites and the blacks together. He was a really great person.” Camille, 6, United States.

"If you had one wish what would it be?”

"I'd wish for everybody to be happy…no poor countries…everybody like a family.” Rani, 8, Malaysia "I would collect all the bombs in the world and destroy them one by one so we could live in peace. I'd get the Nobel Peace Prize.” Adam, 9, Israel "I would wish that I had lots of brothers and sisters because I get so lonely playing by myself when my parents are working. But my parents work because they love me so much.” Jin, 6, China.

Haisha shares the children's answers to her questions in "Whispers from Children's Hearts” in a whimsical fashion, with illustrations by Tim Huhn. At first glance, the book looks like a child's book, but inside is much more. It is a book that grabs your soul on a much deeper level as you read the wise answers that come from each child. The wisdom and knowledge that comes through is an experience in itself. When I first saw the book, I thought, "oh, this will take about an hour to read through.” To my surprise, it is not a book to take lightly - it is a book that makes you contemplate your own answers.