Rylant, C. (1982). When i was young in the mountains. New York, NY: E.P. Dutton.
"When I was Young In The Mountains" is one of the most memorable picture books that I can recall from my adolescent years.  I remember the first time that I heard the story, in fourth grade; we were getting ready to write our personal narratives.  My teacher, Mrs. Ryan, read the story to us, and began telling us her own personal story that related so much to this amazing picture book.

The setting of this story is none other than my home, the Appalachian Mountains.  Through Rylant's story, she portrays the lives of a young boy and girl who spent lots of time with their grandparents.  The story is more of a reminiscence  from either the boy or girl, who are recalling their childhood.  They appeared to have a very loving, "country" childhood, that I, too, personally love to recall quite often.

The illustrations in this book were miraculous.  The color was soft/pale, which helped to set the cool mood for the story.  The realistic art greatly compliments the characters, setting, and plot of the story.

There are endless activities that you could do with any age-group using this story.  Personally, I would first allow my kindergarten students to sequence the story.  Following the sequencing activity, we would make our own classroom book about something that we recall doing "in the mountains."

"When I Was Young In The Mountains" was a recipient of the Caldecott Honor.