The Golden Goblet (Retro Reads)

The Golden Goblet
Eloise Jarvis McGraw
Puffin
1961
Newbery Honor Book

The Golden Goblet is an older book that might be easy to overlook--but don't pass it by! Set in ancient Egypt, The Golden Goblet tells the story of young Ranofer, an orphan who desperately wants to be a goldsmith. It's not that he doesn't have talent; no, it's that his stepbrother (Gebu) is cruel and refuses to pay to apprentice him to a goldsmith. In fact, Ranofer is a lowly worker in a goldsmith's shop until he discovers Gebu's thievery. Once the deception is brought to the attention of the goldsmith, Ranofer is sent to work in the stonecutter's shop--a job that poses risk of harm to Ranofer's skilled artisan fingers in addition to its other hardships.

Bright Island (Retro Reads!)

Bright Island
Mabel Robinson
Random House
2012 (re-issue of 1937 copy)
Newbery Honor


I really appreciate it when publishers re-issue older books. The market isn't as wide, no doubt, for these old-fashioned favorites, but they're worth reading and keeping in print. Bright Island is a great example; the 75th anniversary edition hits stores this month.

One of my favorite books growing up was Ruth Sawyer's Roller Skates (another 1930's Newbery title); Bright Island reminds me of that same type of old-fashioned fiction. It's historical fiction now, but was written as a contemporary title. Thus, it's a great picture into another world. In Bright Island, our heroine, one Thankful Curtis, has grown up island bound and can sail as good as anyone. She can do just about anything she puts her mind to, and has no intention of putting her mind to going to school on the mainland. Homeschooled all her life by her capable mother (of Scots descent!), Thankful does indeed end up finishing school at an elite boarding school on the mainland despite her dread.

Enchantments, Magic, and More This Summer

There are so many wonderful literary adventures that take place during the summer:

• Four Pevensie children first find themselves exploring a familiar wardrobe 
• Henry York first opens a cupboard door 
• A group of four siblings get sent to a great aunt's house in Ireland  
• A girl finds a thimble 
• We first meet the marvelous Penderwicks 

Here are two more delightful summer adventures, both of which are classics that often get overlooked. Both involve 4 children (3 girls and a boy), both have inspired other summer adventures (such as those of the aforementioned Pevensies and Penderwicks), and both deal with some sort of magic talisman that doesn't exactly behave the way one might expect....

The Enchanted Castle
E. Nesbit
1907
Puffin (1994)


Nesbit's influence on later writers of children's fantasy cannot be underestimated and, unlike many 100+ year old books, her stories remain quite readable for children today. The Enchanted Castle is a lively romp in which 4 children discover a magic ring, watch the statuary on the castle grounds come alive, and have all sorts of crazy little adventures. Who wouldn't want a summer like that? Delightful, and since the four children are on summer holiday, it fits right in with a bit of hot July read-a-book-on-the-couch-and-daydream weather.

Half Magic
Edward Eager
1954
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (1999)

The four children in Half Magic actually refer to The Enchanted Castle because they are wishing for their own summer break to be more interesting. But they are destined for magical adventures of their own. They discover a magic coin that grants wishes--every child's secret fantasy! Except that their coin turns out to grant only half a wish. And sometimes that half is a bit hard to predict. But the children learn to adapt and have a truly magical summer even if they aren't back in Nesbit's Enchanted Castle like they first wish. Another great pick-me-up for summer's doldrums, especially when that assigned summer reading list looks, well, too much like homework.


Both books appropriate read alouds for elementary; reading level around middle elementary and up.
Cover images from goodreads; books from my local library

Gardening + Giveaway! (Planting a Rainbow and Growing Vegetable Soup)

 


Planting a Rainbow
Lois Ehlert
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
1992


Growing Vegetable Soup
Lois Ehlert
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
1987



These two charming books have been around a while, but they're worth reminding folks about. My daughter could not get enough of Planting a Rainbow when she was a toddler and preschooler. Recently, we gave board book editions of both books to a friend for her kids; I could hardly pry the books out of my trio's hands in order to wrap them up. They're all old enough to read the books now, so they have a renewed enjoyment in them.

Both books are structured the same way: a garden is planted from start to harvest. The seeds/bulbs/rhizomes/cuttings are all labeled with the name of the resulting fruit/flower. The book progresses through the growing season, showing each plant growing and blossoming (labeled on each page). Ehlert's bold, collage style illustrations are an especial hit with young children.

Friday Fun Activity!

You guessed it: go plant a garden!! These books are wonderful aids in showing our children the intricacies of Creation as well as how much work and time goes on behind the scenes for that delicious carrot or beautiful zinnia. Children love to see how different all the seeds look and love getting their hands dirty and poking around in the dirt. It's not too late to start a garden--flowers or vegetables--this year.

Flowers: Planting a Rainbow features many common flowers, some of which are very kid-friendly. Pick up a packet of zinnia or marigold seeds and let your children have some fun. These flowers are easy to grow and you will still get some nice summer blooms out of them (you may have to water them/baby them a bit if it's already quite hot in your area).

Vegetables: Growing Vegetable Soup talks about a lot of different veggies. Some of the easiest to grow are things like zucchini ; you still have plenty of time to plant those for a harvest (cucumbers, melons, snap/pole beans--all are easy to plant from seed now). No time to garden? You might consider making a regular visit to your local farmer's market or joining a CSA (community supported agriculture).

Just to inspire you MORE, we have 1 board book copy of each book to give away!! We will be including a little extra special surprise for you along with the board book. Leave a comment saying what your gardening plans are and/or a favorite children's book about gardens and which book you'd prefer (no guarantees). We'll choose names at random.

Giveaway ends midnight EST, Thursday May 31. Check back next Friday for the winners!

Gyo Fujikawa: Four Books

A to Z Picture Book (2010)
Fairy Tales and Fables (2008)
Mother Goose (2007)
Oh, What a Busy Day (2010)
Gyo Fujikawa
Sterling


Hip, hip, hooray! Hip, hip, hooray! I love it when publishers re-release books like these. Fujikawa first published these books in the 1970s, and I grew up absorbing them and poring over the intricate illustrations just like many others kids of my day. Guess what?! Kids STILL enjoy poring over them and absorbing them. We saw two of these (nice, hardback) at Barnes and Noble the other night  and snatched them up for a very reasonable price.


Fujikawa mixes color spreads with black-and-white (very common back and then), but her illustrations are still appealing. Her strengths include filling her pages with cavorting young children with a nice multicultural representation (especially given the time period in which she was published). There is always a lot happening and much to take in, but these illustrations remain restful at the same time. Her Mother Goose book contains many rhymes; her fairy tales book contains the best loved and most familiar and well as a nice global sampling of ones not quite so familiar. Oh, What a Busy Day goes through the adventures of a group of children through a busy day, and the ABC book covers a host of activities and objects and events which correspond to the appropriate letter. (Concerned parents may wish to know that there is a big two page spread for Halloween in the ABC Book.)


I've found these at my public library recently (as well as finding them at Barnes and Noble). Look for them if you have young children in the house!

Cover images from goodreads

Corduroy

Corduroy
Don Freeman
1968

Some picture books are still around because we're all too sentimental to give them a gentle nudge into obscurity. After all, if I loved it so much as a kid, surely little Sammy will, too. But that's not always the case. Different time periods produce different people, to some extent. Our children have seen far more images (and moving ones, at that) than we had at their tender age. Text is written and communicated differently, too. Some older picture books don't reach contemporary kids the same way that they reached those same children's parents or grandparents.

BUT, some books DO stand the test of time.... Corduroy (and A Pocket for Corduroy) are just such books. I am amazed each time I reread these gems: Freeman "gets" preschoolers. The text and illustrations are pitch perfect. Seeing Corduroy's little ears poking out of the blankets on the big bed in the department store, looking at the inevitable discovery in the laundromat--perfect. What a tender testimony to love, acceptance, belonging. Freeman manages to achieve just the right amount of tension for a preschooler (a lost button, the desire for a pocket) and then wraps it all up with just enough ending to restore balance. It's also a rare book from this time period that showcases a family that is nonwhite, non house dwelling, non dual parent--and three cheers for Freeman managing to do this without making the books agenda driven.

(I wrote this post quite a while ago--don't know why I didn't "publish" it; but my apologies for no credits for the cover image....)

Retro Reads: Mixed-Up Files and View From Saturday

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
E. L. Konigsburg
1967
Newbery Medal

The View From Saturday

E. L. Konigsburg

1997

Newbery Medal

Recently, I read these two books for the first time. I know, I know.... Having grown up in the 1970s and 1980s, there is no good reason for how I managed to miss Mixed-Up Files. I mean, really. I lay that blame firmly on the shoulders of my school teachers! I've always felt like everyone was in some secret club--my peers as grown-ups talk about Mixed-Up Files with the kind of nostalgia and delight they shower on Wrinkle in Time or even Narnia. View From Saturday didn't appear until I was graduating from college--that blame I lay solely on my children's literature professors who were teaching me in graduate school a few years later!

The Rescuers (Retro Reads)

The Rescuers
Margery Sharp, author.
Garth Williams, illustrator
1959; re-released 2011

I can sing every word of the songs from the animated Rescuers movie--truly, one of the classics of its genre. So, it was with delight that I discovered a month or so ago that it was a book first!! Imagine my added interest when I realized that Garth Williams was the illustrator (he did Charlotte's Web and The Little House books).

And, yes, the book is about two mice named Bernard and Bianca who rescue someone. And there the similarity ends. Disney's animated version did a good job of portraying Bernard's and Bianca's characters, but they completely made up every last little bit of detail and plot for the movie. You might say that the movie was "suggested" by the book.

The Three Billy Goats Gruff (Retro Reads)

The Three Billy Goats Gruff
Paul Galdone
2005 (reprint)

We are HUGE fans of Galdone's folk tales around here; I've highlighted his Gingerbread Boy before. Thankfully, some of his best folk tales are being reissued with newer covers. Yea!!

The Three Billy Goats Gruff, Galdone style, is a wonderful telling of this classic folk tale. If you haven't read this to a small group of young children, you're missing out--they will reenact it over and over and over and over. You're liable to hear repeats whenever you go under (or over) a bridge while out and about.

Galdone tells this tale with all the gore you'd expect from a good, classic folk tale. The troll is fully planning to eat these billy goats and the last billy goat does some damage to that mean ol' troll. Kids need that kind of reconciling action at the end of a story like this. Let them enjoy it! Let good soundly trounce evil... even if that means the big billy goat defeating the troll.

New cover at top; old below.

Play With Me (Retro Reads)

Play With Me
Marie Hall Ets
1976
Caldecott Honor

We don't have only sweet, quiet books here at our house, but I think far too many people in today's society overlook these older, quiet books--so I'm bringing them to your attention during National Picture Book Month. I listed this title in an older post on Restful Illustrations. That's a great description for this gentle book.

A little girl goes outside to play (by herself!) and tries to get various animals to play with her. Eventually, she sits down and is quiet, discouraged perhaps because all the animals have been running away. As she sits there, though, the animals begin to creep back out and be with her.

This is a great book for young children, both for naptime reading time and other times throughout the day. Take it on your next picnic and read it outside! This is the kind of book my kids have enjoyed looking at on their own--something about those peaceful illustrations invite pondering.

May We Sleep Here Tonight? (Retro Reads)

May We Sleep Here Tonight?
Tan Koide (author), Yasuko Koide (illustrator)
1982

This is a "retro reads" book because it is 20 years old! It has been reissued with slightly adapted cover art (as of 2000), so it is still available. Since this is apparently Picture Book Month (who knew?!), I thought I'd highlight some oldies, but goodies. This is a great place to start because May We Sleep Here Tonight is not as well known as some others. It's not a major award winner or terribly progressive or overtly educational.

It IS gentle and beautiful. A Japanese husband-wife team wrote and illustrated this charming picture book (you'll notice Japanese words in the pictures). It strikes the perfect balance between suspense and reassuring for young children. Small animals are lost in the woods and find shelter in a stranger's house. The stranger returns and there is some initial question about this stranger's benevolence....

Retro Reads: The Gammage Cup

The Gammage Cup: a Novel of the Minnipins
Carol Kendall
1959
Newbery Honor Book

Another terrific children's fantasy novel from the 1950s! This one is alternately funny, suspenseful, and thought-provoking. The Minnipins are a rather silly group of small people who are blindly following their supposed upper class (a group known as the Periods--why? well, you have to read to find out!). When a few brave Minnipins stand up to the Periods and stand true to their own beliefs, they are outcast from the village. Those few brave souls end up saving their village and restoring goodwill thanks to some historic swords and battle armor. Along the way, they have a crazy adventure, meet strange creatures from the other side of the mountain, and a few fall in love.

Things to Note/Discuss

• When is it right to conform to the group? to the ruling class? When is it right to stand up for your beliefs, even at the expense of community? Consider both Romans 12 and 13.
• Do you think the Gammage Cup would have been bestowed to a different group of people if the Minnipins had succeeded in welcoming the judges as they'd originally planned?
• Who is the real hero of this book?

Retro Reads: The Children of Green Knowe

The Children of Green Knowe
L. M. Boston
1955
ALA Notable Children's Book

This is a Retro Reads post for sure; I haven't reread this book in ages, but I remember thoroughly enjoying it. Originally published in England, this is fantasy in that grand old English style and quite rewarding to read. Somehow the Brits have the corner on children's fantasy--especially that involving mysterious old houses, time travel, and a group of siblings from long ago....

The Children of Green Knowe is just the first in a series; children who enjoy other British fantasy will no doubt enjoy these books as well. They are similar to the Narnia Chronicles or Dianna Wynne Jones' works in reading level. (And, it's worth pointing out that this book exists with LOTS of different covers)

Retro Reads: Pollyanna

Pollyanna
Eleanor F. Porter
1913

Just the mention of the name "Pollyanna" is liable to create one of two reactions in many readers (some may have both!): an image of a cute, young Hayley Mills and/or the word "glad."

Both are appropriate! I remember the Hayley Mills movie from when I was a kid, but I'd never actually read Pollyanna until just recently. I'm so glad I did! This book has become such a part of our cultural heritage that people even use the term "pollyanna-ish" or "pollyanna spirit."

A Boy, A Dog, and a Frog

A Boy, A Dog, and a Frog (mini boxed set of 4 books)
Mercer Mayer
1976 (the boxed set)

I still have the little set of mini books I was given as a child. Oh, how I poured over these illustrations with my mom and sister. The expressions on the frog's face are priceless. A particular favorite is the scene in which frog realizes he's left all alone. For a couple of pages, he gets smaller and smaller until he's really quite tiny--yet you can still see his sad little expression. These little books are a true gem. If you can't get the mini books, the bigger ones will do. But there's something about the small size that makes them extra inviting to little hands. I find them in my children's beds all the time--evidence that some little person couldn't resist Frog's siren call for help.

All-of-a-Kind Family

All-of-a-Kind Family
Sydney Taylor
1951

This book review is in honor of dear Megan who is enjoying having her beautiful new baby finally in her arms! (Another boy :-) ). Congratulations, Megan and family!

I know Megan read these books growing up and harbors all kinds of warm fuzzies toward them. What a great choice for my first Retro Reads post!

All-of-a-Kind Family is one of those books like The Five Little Peppers that makes you kind of (secretly, even) wish you were poor. The family is so loving, cheerful, hard-working, and kind that poverty looks downright enviable. The mother is devoted to her home and children, the hard-working husband comes home to children who are eager to shower him with affection, and all are working together to pinch pennies where necessary, sacrifice immediate gratification, and save up for wonderful family celebrations.

New Feature: Retro Reads

I was at my friend Brandy's house this morning (we could talk books for HOURS--really, people, we have play dates for our kids as an excuse to hang out on the couch and talk books...; it's almost as bad as when Megan and I have one of our scheduled phone calls....). Anyway, I was brainstorming with her how to discuss books I loved as a kid but haven't read since, books that are... well... old, and books that are "classics"--and she coined "Retro Reads" for me. Brilliant.

Here's what you'll find in Retro Reads (hopefully Megan and co. will join in):

• book reviews about books I loved back in the day but haven't reread as a critic; think of it as the kid's perspective, only from about 25 years distant (Wrinkle in Time, Bridge to Terebithia)
• book reviews about books that are no longer "contemporary" and have to be lumped into historical fiction... but they're really not what most grownups consider historical (Ramona Quimby, Age 8--joke's on us, right?!)
• book reviews about recognized classics (Heidi, Tom Sawyer, etc.)

I'll index them in with the rest, but label them "Retro Reads" so you know what kind of a review you're getting. If I missed sex, drugs, rock and roll in the book as a kid, it's safe to assume your kid will probably overlook them, too :-).

And now, my tea (Tetley British Blend--I need a serious wake up call this afternoon) is finished steeping and I'm off to read a stimulating Library Science textbook all about Collection Development (aka, buying more books for your library shelves). You should know that Retro Reads will comprise much of my reviews this fall since no one really wants me to review Collection and Development for the 21st century (or whatever it's called) in this particular blog space....