Monthly Archives: December 2014

The Animals’ Merry Christmas

Posted on December 25, 2014 | Comments Off on The Animals’ Merry Christmas

IMG_3609

This collection of short stories and poems is one of my very favorite books. I loved it when I was a kid and now I love reading one or two of the stories to the boys each night before bed during the lead up to Christmas. The stories are absolutely charming and the pictures are beautiful and I wish this version (from 1969) wasn’t out of print (the version currently in print cut out a few of my favorite stories–I have no idea why). Don’t let the missing stories stop you from picking up a copy of the new edition, if you don’t have one already. This book is contains so much holiday joy; it really shouldn’t be missed.

Author: Kathryn Jackson
Illustrator: Richard Scarry

Comments Off on The Animals’ Merry Christmas

Posted in Chapter Books

Tagged , , , , , , , ,

Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree

Posted on December 24, 2014 | Comments Off on Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree

IMG_3605

Mr. Willowby’s Christmas tree is a touch too big for his space. So the top is lopped off and given to his upstairs maid. But it is a touch too big for her space, so the top is lopped off and discovered by the gardener. But it is a touch too big for his space, so… Well, you get the idea. One big tree brings a lot of happiness to a lot of people (and animals too).

Author: Robert Barry
Illustrator: Robert Barry

Comments Off on Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree

Posted in Picture Books

Tagged , , ,

Christmas Wombat

Posted on December 22, 2014 | Comments Off on Christmas Wombat

IMG_3603

Leaving cookies (chocolate chip!) and milk for Santa, plus carrots for his reindeer, is an old and happy tradition. Little did we know who else might be hitching a ride on the sleigh…

Suffice it to say that wombats still love carrots (and we still love wombats). So, this year, we will include some extra carrots on the plate.

Author: Jackie French
Illustrator: Bruce Whatley

Comments Off on Christmas Wombat

Posted in Picture Books

Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Posted on December 21, 2014 | Comments Off on The Twelve Days of Christmas

IMG_3596

Each double-page spread in this intriguing book highlights one of the twelve sets of gifts listed in the title song. The twist is that each of these (gorgeous!) spreads has all of the previous gifts lurking within it (so, for example, a partridge in a pear tree and two turtledoves are hidden somewhere in the spread highlighting the three French hens). Some of the previous gifts are easy to find, some of them we still haven’t found yet. But it is a true pleasure to try.

Author: unknown
Illustrator: Laurel Long

Comments Off on The Twelve Days of Christmas

Posted in Picture Books

Tagged , , , ,

The Squirrel’s Birthday and Other Parties

Posted on December 20, 2014 | Comments Off on The Squirrel’s Birthday and Other Parties

IMG_3397

Over the last thirty years, Dutch author Toon Tellegen has written over 300 stories about a group of anthropomorphized animals. This book is contains nine of these stories that all, in one way or another, relate to parties. The stories are whimsical, delicate, and quiet. The characters glory in lists, details, and internal discourses. The book itself is beautifully and thoughtfully produced (down to a bright ribbon bookmark). It is charming, bittersweet, and perfect for bedtime.

Author: Toon Tellegen
Illustrator: Jessica Ahlberg

Comments Off on The Squirrel’s Birthday and Other Parties

Posted in Chapter Books

Tagged , , , , , , , ,

How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World

Posted on December 15, 2014 | Comments Off on How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World

IMG_3518

Making an apple pie is really very easy.
First, get all the ingredients at the market.
Mix them well, bake, and serve.

Unless, of course,
the market is closed.

In that case, go home and pack a suitcase.

The pie-craving protagonist travels to Italy (for wheat), Frances (for a chicken that lays “elegant eggs”), Sri Lanka (for kurundu bark), England (for a cow to provide milk), Jamaica (for seawater and sugar cane), and Vermont (for apples). Once the traveling is through, all she will have to do is:

mill the wheat into flour,
grind the kurundu
bark into cinnamon,
evaporate the seawater
from the salt,
boil the sugar cane,
persuade the chicken
to lay an egg…

Well, you get the idea. This book is thoughtful, colorful, and quietly funny. Perhaps it was inspired by the famous Carl Sagan quote: “If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.” (My youngest swears by the apple pie recipe on the last page.)

Author: Marjorie Priceman
Illustrator: Marjorie Priceman

Comments Off on How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World

Posted in Picture Books

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type

Posted on December 9, 2014 | Comments Off on Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type

IMG_3423

Farmer Brown has some problems.

It was bad enough the cows had
found the old typewriter in the
barn, now they wanted electric
blankets! “No way,” said Farmer
Brown. “No electric blankets.”

So the cows went on strike.
They left a note on the barn door.

Sorry.
We’re closed.
No milk
today.

Soon the hens join the work stoppage. And what are those seemingly-neutral ducks up to?

If workers’ rights are civil rights, as the slogan goes, we have a mini theme going this week. (When the boys stage a sit-in protest of my menu choices, I’ll have only myself to blame.) This book is very funny and I can’t read it aloud without hearing (and slightly mimicking) the Scholastic video version narrated by Randy Travis.

Author: Doreen Cronin
Illustrator: Betsy Lewin

Comments Off on Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type

Posted in Picture Books

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer!

Posted on December 6, 2014 | Comments Off on You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer!

IMG_3412

It was Mary Poppins, of all things, that introduced my boys to the idea that women had not always had the same civil rights as men. My oldest was curious, so I started looking for age-appropriate discussions of the subject. This was a success; the boys actively request we read it.

Amelia Bloomer was born in 1818, but she was utterly uninterested in being a “proper lady.” She wanted to work, vote, and wear practical clothing. So, she started her own newspaper, advocated for the vote, and published the pattern for the proto-pants that became known as bloomers. As Mrs. Banks would say: “Well done, Sister Suffragette!”

Author: Shana Corey
Illustrator: Chesley McLaren

Comments Off on You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer!

Posted in Non-fiction, Picture Books

Tagged , , , , ,

Alexander

Posted on December 4, 2014 | Comments Off on Alexander

IMG_3419

It was bedtime. Chris and his father sat side by side on
Chris’s bed.
“Alexander was a pretty bad horse today,” Chris said.

His father lit his pipe. “Alexander, the red horse with
green stripes?”
Chris nodded.
“What happened?” Chris’s father asked.

It seems Alexander has had a rough, rough day. But Chris’s father reassures him that “anybody can have a bad day once in a while” (even, it turns out, Chris), and still be able to look forward to being “wonderful” tomorrow.

This charming vintage book feels extremely contemporary (well, except for that pipe), and is the perfect reminder that tomorrow is another day.

Author: Harold Littledale
Illustrator: Tom Vroman

Comments Off on Alexander

Posted in Picture Books

Tagged , , , , , , ,