Tag Archives: out of print

The Tale of Meshka the Kvetch

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Tonight I thought I’d give the boys a treat by reading How I Became  a Pirate. (I don’t like romanticizing pirates, so we don’t have many pirate-related books. Which may make reading about them more exciting, rather than less. Huh.)   But the boys took one look at it and moaned, in unison:  “We have that at school!”

So, I picked out Meshka.  And they were thrilled.  Go figure.

Meshka is a practiced complainer (a kvetch).  Her back doesn’t simply ache, it feels as if she has “carried the Wall of Jericho itself.”  Her studious son “sit[s] around the house like a bump on a kosher pickle.”  And so on and so forth.  But, one day, everything she complains about literally comes to pass.  What is a kvetch to do?

The message here (praise the good in your life rather than bemoan the bad) isn’t subtle, but it is a good one and easily carried along by the humorous plot and lively illustrations.

Author:  Carol Chapman
Illustrator:  Arnold Lobel

Charlotte’s Web

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This classic is one of the very best books to read aloud to children. (I’ve been known to read it to babies.) Our edition has gently colorized pictures that gild the lily a bit but please the boys. It called the Signature Edition and is out of print but fairly simple to find.

We also enjoy the (much less beautiful) animated movie now and then (mostly for the songs).

 Author: E.B. White
Illustrator: Garth Williams, with watercoloring by Rosemary Wells

The Country Life of J.B. Rabbit

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In this sequel to All Aboard with Jeremy Rabbit, it is Waldo Otter’s turn to be a fish out of water when he visits his cousin, Jeremy Rabbit, in the country.  This time there are trips on a car, river boat, and bicycles.  There are more delicious feasts and daring rescues.  And once again the cousins, although they go through a few rough patches during the visit, have a wonderful time together.

Author: Doris Susan Smith
Illustrator: Doris Susan Smith

All Aboard with Jeremy Rabbit

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As I’ve mentioned before, searching for the rare Need a House? Call Ms. Mouse led to The Elephant’s Airplane, one of our favorite books to date.  Since its major attraction was its illustrations, I went hunting for all the other books illustrated by Doris Smith that I could find.  All Aboard with Jeremy Rabbit seemed particularly interesting because it was both  authored and illustrated by Ms. Smith and it has turned out to be a greatly enjoyable book in its own right.  We have the United Kingdom version of this long out-of-print book; it was published in the States as The Travels of J.B. Rabbit.

In this book, landlubber Jeremy Rabbit visits his seafaring cousin Waldo Otter for a memorable vacation.  There are trips on a train, car, boat, and hot air balloon.  There are delicious feasts and daring rescues. And, perhaps best of all, there is a sequel.

Author: Doris (Susan) Smith
Illustrator: Doris (Susan) Smith

The Elves and the Shoemaker

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There was once a good shoemaker
who became very poor.

At last he had only one piece of leather
to make one pair of shoes.

“Well,” said the shoemaker to his wife,
“I will cut the leather tonight
and make the shoes in the morning.”

The story that follows is full of craftsmanship, thoughtfulness, generosity, good fortune, and magic. I loved this book as a child (my mom bought it from someone going door-to-door pulling a wagon full of used books, if I remember correctly) and the boys really enjoy it now.

Author: Freya Littledale/The Grimm Brothers
Illustrator: Brinton Turkle

If You Were Born a Kitten

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This quiet book tells gestation/birth/baby stories for many different animals, ending with one human baby:

You rode curled beneath your mother’s heart,
growing and growing. You floated in a salty sea, waiting
and waiting. Waiting for us who were waiting for you.
“We’re ready,” we said. And you were ready too.
So you squeezed out, wailing.

My toddlers thought babies were interesting.  That tendency, combined with the interesting details on the various animals and gentle pictures, ensured this cozy book kept their attention during the board book years.

Author:  Marion Dane Bauer
Illustrator:  JoEllen McAllister Stammen

Wings, Horns, and Claws: A Dinosaur Book of Epic Proportions

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This is a straightforward book with beautiful woodcut illustrations, an ever-appealing subject matter, and ever-appreciated pronunciation guidance. Our favorite dinosaur in the book is pictured above. The boys agree its tail might take out a T-rex and the oldest thinks it looks like “a very early kind of knight.”

Author: Christopher Wormel
Illustrator: Christopher Wormel

What to Read (to Your Toddler) When You’re Expecting

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We found all of these books to be helpful (in different ways) for preparing for an sibling.

Waiting for Baby and My New Baby have no words; their stories revolve around a toddler’s-eye viewpoint of what happens when mom is pregnant and then what happens when the baby arrives.  There are three primary reasons these books are a great way for toddlers to get used to what is going on and what is likely to happen next.  First, you can customize the “story” to where you are in the process and what they most want to know.  Second, there is a real focus on showing how the soon-to-be sibling will be involved in the process (for example, helping make dinner for a tired mom, or helping dad take baby on an outing). Third, the books make it very clear that the older sibling always has an important place at the center of the family. We “read” these books a lot.

What Shall We Do With the Boo-Hoo Baby? gets toddlers used to the idea that babies cry sometimes, and there are things that you can try to do that might help, but sometimes they won’t work out as hoped (and that is OK).

On Mother’s Lap has a simple, sweet message of there always being enough room on mother’s lap (and, implicitly, enough love to go around).

Authors:  Annie Kubler, Cressida Cowell, Ann Herbert Scott
Illustrators:  Annie Kubler, Ingrid Godon, Glo Coalson

 

 

Hush, Little Alien

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Hush, little alien,
don’t say a word,
Papa’s gonna catch
you a goonie bird.

If that goonie bird flies too far,
Papa’s gonna lasso you a shooting star.

If that shooting star’s too hot,
Papa’s gonna
find you an astronaut!

When my oldest was two, he started singing this song. I thought he was making it up as he went along and was absolutely amazed.  Finally I caught on that he had heard it at school, started searching, and found the song has come from this really fun variation on “Hush, Little Baby.”  (Of course, I still think my boy hung the moon.)

Caveat:  The astronaut Papa finds fights back (with his fist), so the aliens move on to something else.  I always just shook my fist, added the line “Put me down, please!” and moved right along, but if you are concerned about any kind of physical confrontation, you may want to skip this one.

Author:  Daniel Kirk
Illustrator:  Daniel Kirk

You Choose!

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The boys love choosing and discarding and comparing, so this book is absolutely perfect.  It asks question after question (for example: If you could go anywhere, where would you go?  Who would you like for family and friends?  What kind of home would you choose?  And what would you put in it?).  The more you look at this book, the more you realize is packed onto each page. The boys grab it often and spend tons of time with it, engrossed in thought or (even better) discussing their options together.

Author: Pippa Goodhart
Illustrator: Nick Sharratt