Aunt Nancy and Old Man Trouble by Phyllis Root

Aunt Nancy and Old Man Trouble by Phyllis Root, illus by David Parkins, Candlewick Press, 1996. ISBN 0-7636-0650-2
Publisher's Summary: When Old Man Trouble calls on Aunt Nancy, he tries very hard to perform a trick that will bother her; however, she knows just how to handle him.
Really clever tale showing how to look at the positive side of things, rather than focusing on the negative. Also by the same author: Sam Who Was Swallowed by a Shark, Mrs. Potter's Pig, and the sequel to this book, Aunt Nancy and Cousin Lazybones.

Island Baby by Holly Keller

Island Baby by Holly Keller, Mulberry, 1992, ISBN 0-688-13617-6
Publisher's Summary: Pops, a man who runs a bird hospital on an island, and his young helper Simon nurse an injured baby bird back to health.
With the recent Gulf of Mexico oil spill threatening my hometown coast of Mobile, Alabama, I couldn't help but wonder at the coincidence of me picking up this book today. It tells the story of a young boy and an older man, who together take care of all the injured birds on the island. In the end, the boy has to let the (now healed) bird go, just as his mother has to "let him go" to ccschool. Nice parallel that will probably go over the young readers' head but will bring a smile to more mature readers. This book would be one of many that teach children that one person can make a difference in our world. We may soon see children all up and down the Gulf Coast doing just that.
Note: for a novel along these same lines, see The Islander by Cynthia Rylant.