In my review of Here Come the Bears, I explained how delighted I was that Purple House Press is actively working to bring the Alice Goudey books back into print. These charming and scientifically accurate books are written for young readers, but are fascinating to the child at heart in all of us. Alice Goudey…
Tag: picture books
Here Come the Bears
Listen Now: Years ago, a dear friend mentioned that she was collecting as many of the Alice Goudey books as she could find. She has the very best taste in books and she thought that they were charming and explained scientific ideas to children in a timeless and friendly way that is so rarely replicated…
A Blizzard Year
I don’t recall how I acquired A Blizzard Year. It’s a very interesting little book that could have belonged to one of my children once upon a time, or I may have picked it up at the library book sale. No matter, I have had it a while, and picked it up on a whim…
Miss Moore Thought Otherwise
I recently started off on a rabbit trail that leads back through prominent librarians of the 20th Century to the first women librarians in America. These women were influential in shaping ideas about the kinds of books that should be written for children. Many of them resorted to writing children’s books themselves. While sorting…
Stick
Stick is another of my serendipitous library finds. The little frog on the first page is so cute I couldn’t resist taking him home. I assumed, from the first page, that the story wasn’t going to be terribly original. We all know this story. The young frog is going to insist on doing things…
I’d Know You Anywhere
I’d Know You Anywhere, My Love by Nancy Tillman There are things about you quite unlike any other . . . Things always known by your father or mother. So if you decide to be different one day, No worries . . . I’d know you anyway. The things people throw away! I picked up…
Amos and Boris
I enjoyed William Steig’s Sylvester and the Magic Pebble years ago, but not so much that I set out to find everything Steig had written. More recently, I read Dr. De Soto and didn’t love it. I also remember feeling that the cover of The Amazing Bone is a bit creepy; flashbacks to childhood nightmares…
A Fly Went By
A Fly Went ByBy Mike McClintockIllustrated by Fritz Siebel A Fly Went By is another old (1958) favorite picture book in the “I Can Read It All By Myself” series. I loved reading it all by myself when I was learning to read. My kids loved it, and now I’m using it with my students…
Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are?
When I found this book, I had previously considered myself well-versed in Dr. Seuss. I had never even heard of this one before. The copy I bought at a library book sale was already tattered, so I assumed someone must have loved it. Because it was fun for me to read, my small son loved…
Robert the Rose Horse
Robert was a happy little horse. He lived on a farm. He lived with his mother And father. That is, until the fateful birthday party. All of his friends come. They wait expectantly as Robert’s mother brings in the cake decorated with beautiful red roses. Robert puts his nose right into a rose and takes…
Pickle-Chiffon Pie
Do you read dust jackets? Be honest. Do you? Do I? If I am honest, only sometimes. Last fall Jill Morgan sent me a box of some of her favorite Purple House Press books hoping that I would like them as much as she does. It turns out that I do. I. Really. Do. When…
Miss Jaster’s Garden
Miss Jaster’s Garden by illustrator turned author N. M. Bodecker is one of those picture books that every family library should have. The illustration has a daydream-like quality with soft watercolors, the story line is adorable and the kind that children love to giggle at, and the writing is charming and intelligent. If Anne Shirley-Blythe…
Alexander
What is it about Alexanders and their no good days? One of my favorite books from my childhood is Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst. In that story, Alexander has one of those days wherein nothing goes right and he is his own worst enemy. Little kids find…
The Little Old Man Who Could Not Read
The Little Old Man Who Could Not Read by Irma Simonton Black is a tender tale about an old craftsman who loves his toy-making work so much that he fails to make time for other important things – like learning to read. In this funny but educational little story, children learn, through the toymaker’s experience, why…
Miss Suzy
Miss Suzy By Miriam Young Illustrated by Arnold Lobel I’m only two years older than Miss Suzy, but I had never seen the book until last year. How did that happen? I didn’t get to share this sweet story with my kids when they were little, but my grandkids love it. Miss Suzy’s story…