Tag Archives: out of print

Mrs. Armitage and the Big Wave

Posted on November 24, 2013 | Comments Off on Mrs. Armitage and the Big Wave

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I’ve always associated Quentin Blake with his illustrations for Roald Dahl’s books, but Blake has both written and illustrated over thirty books of his own.  In his three-book Armitage series, a quirky character reacts to seemingly mundane situations in increasingly unusual ways.

In the Big Wave, the second Armitage book, the title character triumphantly turns a simple surfboard into something more akin to a flotilla, based on repeated discoveries of “what we need here” while waiting for the Big Wave with her faithful dog.  In the other Armitage books, Mrs. Armitage seems a bit scattered and disaster prone.  But the Big Wave shows Mrs. Armitage at her most creative, competent, and engaging.  (Mrs. Armitage, Queen of the Road is also popular in our house; Mrs. Armitage on Wheels is not.)

Author:  Quentin Blake
Illustrator:  Quentin Blake

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The Hidden House

Posted on November 24, 2013 | Comments Off on The Hidden House

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This book tells a quiet story.  Three dolls are made by an old man and are happy for a time, but are then abandoned along with his house (implicitly upon his death) and left lonely for many years, only to be rediscovered and made happy again by a young family.  When we read it, it captures the boys’ attention completely–sometimes I think it is largely because of the beautiful,  dreamlike illustrations.  But we’ve read a number of books with wonderful illustrations that never really caught their interest (sometimes much to my surprise).  There is more here than meets the eye.

Author:  Martin Waddell
Illustrator:  Angela Barrett

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Box and Cox

Posted on November 19, 2013 | Comments Off on Box and Cox

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Box and Cox is another story with a twist–two very different men seem to lead two very different lives, but they (unknowingly) live in the same room and plan to marry the same (rather flustered) woman.  The mechanics of this story and the highly expressive pictures make us laugh every time.  (And it turns out there are lots of “sight words,” which is very helpful right now for school.)

David Small has illustrated a number of our favorites; you’ll be seeing his name here again.

Author:  Grace Chetwin
Illustrator:  David Small

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Socks for Supper

Posted on November 18, 2013 | Comments Off on Socks for Supper

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When a couple of farmers eat one turnip too many, it kicks off a truly unexpected chain of events.  Bartering, knitting, a cow, and Christmas all come together to create a wonderful surprise that the kids are happy to see unfold time and again.

Most of our Christmas books are only brought out between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day.  But we all have silently agreed that this one can stay out year round.

Author:  Jack Kent
Illustrator: Jack Kent

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First Discovery Books series

Posted on November 15, 2013 | Comments Off on First Discovery Books series

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I began hunting down these books well before the boys were born.  I stumbled on one (Fruit?  Colors?  I really don’t remember) and completely fell for their simple yet brilliant design–regular page, transparent page, regular page.  For example, in The Rain Forest when you first open the book you see only lush, green plants.  Turn the transparent page and suddenly the animals and birds that have been hiding behind the plants burst into view.

The boys really enjoy non-fiction books and I gravitate to fiction, so these have been a great way to balance the scales a bit.  They are great for nap time and for paging through alone because their spiral bindings and very strong pages mean they are about as durable as board books.  Plus, their constant surprises help non-readers fully engage in what is going on.  We currently have (gulp) at least 35 books in the series  (I can’t be certain I found all of them for the photo shoot) yet I still pick up more whenever I can.  Many of the books in the series are out of print in English, but they are fairly easy to find online.  Both my boys consistently prefer the Airplanes and Flying Machines  and Castles books above all the others, although Boats has been a recent favorite. 

Author: varies
Illustrator:  varies

 

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Panda Cake

Posted on November 14, 2013 | Comments Off on Panda Cake

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A panda cake, a panda cake,
Mama is making a panda cake.

Panda Cake is, as far as I can tell, is Rosalie Seidler’s only book.  (I hope I’m wrong and will discover another one someday.)  It is quietly lovely, gently humorous, and makes me wish that I could somehow bake “that wonderful cake/That only a panda knows how to make” with my boys.  Some combination of the lilting cadence, soft black-and-white pictures (perfect for pandas!), and gentle message always draws us  in.  Great for before bed, or any time at all.

Author:  Rosalie Seidler
Illustrator:  Rosalie Seidler

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The Elephant’s Airplane and Other Machines

Posted on November 10, 2013 | Comments Off on The Elephant’s Airplane and Other Machines

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For years I’ve heard about the beloved Need a House?  Call Ms. Mouse! but I’ve never been able to find a copy that wasn’t selling for hundreds of dollars.  (I’m still looking, if anyone has a hot lead!)  But I’m very grateful to Ms. Mouse; she led me to my oldest son’s very favorite book:  The Elephant’s Airplane and Other Machines.  Doris Susan Smith illustrated both books and her work is amazingly intricate and creative.  The story (translated from the original French) is really mostly an excuse for the illustrations; animals come from far and wide to Raccoon, Maker of Fine Machines, to order the custom-built machines of their dreams.  My son’s favorites include an underwater speed boat for The Deep Diving Platypus and a traveling home for Rabbit the Explorer.  Personally, I’m particularly fond of the heated snowmobile for A Most Unusual Lizard.  Though it is out of print, this book is easy to find and is absolutely worth the effort.

Author:  Anne-Marie Dalmais
Illustrator:  Doris Susan Smith

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The Train they Call the City of New Orleans

Posted on November 10, 2013 | Comments Off on The Train they Call the City of New Orleans

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Singing, good morning America, how are you?
Saying, don’t you know me, I’m your native son?
I’m the train they call “The City of New Orleans.”
I’ll be gone five hundred miles when the day is done.

My boys are fascinated by trains, dragons, knights, planes, and astronauts. Anything that involves one or more of these subjects is likely to be a hit, so I have been keeping an eye out for The Train they Call the City of New Orleans ever since I saw a blog post showing its beautiful artwork. The only problem was that this book is out of print and was in the three-figure price range, but the ways of Amazon are mysterious and I recently snagged a copy for its original price. It is just as beautiful as it appeared and my boys are really enjoying it (especially when I read the words instead of singing them, alas!). If you’re interested in the song that inspired the book, I particularly like John Denver’s version (it comes from his CD on trains–which is really a good one).

Author: Steve Goodman
Illustrator: Michael McCurdy

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