Ox-Cart Man
By Donald Hall
Illustrated by Barbara Cooney
Ox Cart Man was first published as a poem by Donald Hall in The New Yorker magazine on October 3rd, 1977.
Categories
Category: books
Let’s cut to the chase …
I am an Italian professor, and thus, I am a bit of a purist (read: snob) when it comes to books based on or set in Italy. I’ll find one spelling mistake (biscottos) or a random incorrect fact, and I get right up on my horse, look down my nose, and turn away with disdain dripping from my every gesture.
Okay, perhaps that is a bit of an exaggeration, but I do wholeheartedly wish that authors would do a little research before crafting a tale about the bel paese. Of course, I realize this obsession is but a quirk of mine alone, and I’ve actually come to embrace books, especially picture books, that bring a little bit of Italy to their readers.
Categories
Lucia and the Light – 11/21/11
A bit over a week remains in Picture Book Month, but I feel certain that we will continue to celebrate the genre well into the new year. Today’s selection is dear to my heart, though I imagine it isn’t a book many people will recognize.
Lucia and the Light
by Phyllis Root
illustrated by Mary GrandPre
I have just returned from a weekend lecture and workshop at the Princeton Waldorf School with the incomparable Kim John Payne, author of Simplicity Parenting.
Categories
Blueberries for Sal 11/18/11
In what may prove to be the shortest blog post ever, today’s Picture Book Selection comes from one of my favorite children’s book authors, Robert McCloskey.
Blueberries for Sal
As we near the end of Picture Book Month, don’t miss the opportunity to visit the Official Picture Book Month website for activities and great selections to share with your children throughout the year.
When Oprah starts talking about something, you know it has touched a public nerve, so cap off your Friday by reading her post: Promote Early Childhood Literacy, Wonder, and Snuggling.
Happy Weekend and Happy Reading to all!
My First Little House
Anyone who knows me even moderately well understands how much I love the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. No, not the television series (though I can now as an adult see the appeal of it as well), but the original book collection that follows the pioneering family Ingalls, and later Laura and her husband Almanzo, as they plant roots in America.
“Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere.” ~ Carl Sagan
Harold and the Purple Crayon
by Crockett Johnson
Written in 1955 by Crockett Johnson, Harold and the Purple Crayon is sure to bring to mind your own childhood reading days. Children of the 70s, how often did you sit at the knee of your school librarian as she shared this marvelous story of Harold, a boy who could create entire worlds and change course with one flick of his purple crayon?
I read this book to my children this evening before bed, and their delight with clever Harold was evident. This is a book I can get behind because it celebrates unadulterated imagination in children. Absolutely anything can happen if you just let go.
I hope you’ll read Harold and the Purple Crayon with your children and encourage them to unleash their own creativity in whatever form best suits them. Only good can come of that.
Imagination truly is the driving force behind invention. Let it begin today.
“All men who have achieved great things have been great dreamers.” ~Orison Swett Marden
We have arrived at mid-month, and the countdown to our final picture book begins. Are you celebrating Picture Book Month in your home? If so, tell me how. Since picture books are an integral part of our daily routine, my children probably haven’t noticed much of a difference, but we are, as always, enjoying the simple pleasure of reading aloud together at breakfast, after school, and before bed.
Today I hope you’ll consider picking up a book by author and illustrator extraordinaire Virginia Lee Burton when next you visit your library or bookstore.
Here are a few of our favorites:
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
The Little House
Katy and the Big Snow
There are wonderful activities and information on the Official Publisher’s site for all of Virginia Lee Burton’s creations. Rediscover these classics with your children today.
Categories
What’s My Picture Book Pick for 11/14?
Drum roll, please …
Grandpa Green
by Lane Smith
On the passionate recommendation of teachers and other mothers, I purchased an autographed copy of this book a few weeks back at my son’s school book fair. I have yet to give it to him (it’s tucked away for Christmas), so I can’t speak to a child’s reaction just yet, but I can say that this heartwarming story by noted picture book creator Lane Smith is unique.
Categories
Weekend Picture Book Selection! 11/12-11/13
A Child’s Calendar
Poems by John Updike
Illustrations by Trina Schart Hyman
Quickly …. pick your favorite month of the year. Shall we choose November?
The stripped and shapely
Maple grieves
The loss of her
Departed leaves.
The ground is hard,
As hard as stone.
The year is old,
The birds are flown.
And yet the world,
Nevertheless,
Displays a certain
Loveliness —
The beauty of
The Bone. Tall God
Must see our souls
This way, and nod.
Give thanks: we do,
Each in his place
Around the table
During grace.