A scarecrow stood in the garden. Tall, proud, and smiling. Every day a girl brought her favorite books to the garden and she read to him. He heard tales of courage and of hope. And when she said, "The End," the scarecrow always felt a little bit taller and braver. Year after year, she came and she read to him. Until one spring, two different hands picked him up from the garden shed and placed him in the garden. He waited, but she didn't come to read to him. With poignant words from Michelle Houts and lush illustrations by Sara Palacios, Hopefully the Scarecrow is a tender distillation of the enduring power of friendship and a heartwarming look at the ways stories connect us.