favorites – On the Children's Shelf

Reading Children’s Books

*author’s note…this originally appeared on HamletHub Books, Ink in September 2015. 11 years ago. I am so lucky that I’ve been able to write about children’s books for the past almost 12 years and I’m excited to share more books with you.

A year ago (2014), I asked my friend Sally (editor of Books, Ink) if I could do a weekly column on children’s books. I read a lot of children’s books, had several favorites, a pile of books I wanted to recommend to readers and I wanted to read more. I didn’t have a big plan beyond that. I wanted to read good books to my children and I wanted to share those good books with other parents looking for something new to read.

Over the past year, I have revisited favorite characters. I dove back into stories from my childhood that I remember my mom reading to me. I read new books. I watched as my children found new favorite characters. I found a few characters who have been added to my list of favorites. I have read books that I didn’t expect to like and loved them. I have stepped outside of my “reading comfort zone” and I am so grateful for the wonderful authors and characters I have met along the way.

I learned a lot over this past year. Two lessons fight for top billing so I will address both of them. First, adults should read children’s books. I have learned so much from talking pigs and spiders and from a story told in first person gorilla. I have been disappointed in humans when shown through the eyes of an animal, my faith in humanity restored through the eyes of those same animals. I have learned to get beyond my adult notion that stories must be told by humans. Stories can be told by humans, animals, aliens, and the list goes on. I have learned that children and animals remind me of the things that matter most in life….the value of friendship, the power of a commitment, it’s ok to be afraid, try to be brave, and don’t forget to laugh. I hope that adults reading this column will read at least one of the children’s books I have recommended. I hope they will find that the stories are just as complex, just as powerful, just as moving as those written specifically for adults. Just because a story is written for a child doesn’t mean it is meant only for that age group. Often times, it means the content is appropriate for that age group while the lessons and issues the characters face are things with which readers of all ages can identify.

Secondly, I learned a lesson I hope to pass on to my children….Read because you love to read, read what makes you happy. I have heard that children who don’t love reading haven’t found the right book. I couldn’t agree more. Read a comic book, read a history book, read a science book, read a poem. Just read. Dive into whatever world interests you, explore it, meet the characters, go on journeys with them, share the book with your friends. Just read.

This year, I met many great characters. A gorilla named Ivan (The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate) is one who has left a lasting impression on my life. I talk about Ivan as a friend…my gorilla friend who lives in a book. My daughter and I have had many conversations about this wonderful gorilla, how much we loved getting to know him, friends we want to introduce to him by sharing the book, and that sometimes a book will make you cry….I admit I’m getting a little teary just writing about this book. I read it because my daughter recommended it to me with so much passion and excitement, I knew I needed to read it immediately. I dove in and couldn’t put it down. I read the acknowledgements. I read every last word inside that book cover. As, I read Applegate’s Newberry Medal Acceptance Speech, I found words that I knew immediately I needed to share when I wrote this piece on what the last year has meant to me:

“Every time you find the right, the necessary, book for a child — a book about sadness overcome, unfairness battled, hearts mended — you perform the best kind of magic. It doesn’t matter if it’s about a gorilla or a nuclear physicist, a puppeteer, a motherless girl, or a clueless fish. If it’s the right book, you’ve allowed a child to make a leap out of her own life, with all its limitations and fears — and yes, sometimes sadness — into another, to imagine new possibilities for herself and for her world.” – Katherine Applegate

I love this speech. Read a great book. Share it with a child. It might mean more to that child than you ever expected or imagined. Books from my childhood have stayed with me and continue to hold a special place in my heart. I am so grateful for those characters, those stories and to those who handed the books to me.

I ask my children to just try when they read. Try a new author. Try a new genre. Try a new reading level. It might be a good fit for you, it might not. That is ok. Just try a book. You might get lucky and find one of those books that changes your life, the kind of book that you read a bit slower so it lasts longer, the kind of book that you finish and turn back to the first page and start again. Those books change lives, and for every reader, those books are different. Don’t hesitate to read a book because it isn’t an adult book or it isn’t a genre you normally choose. Pick up a book…a book with a pretty cover art, a book a friend recommended, a book I recommended, a book that has a Newberry Medal sticker on the front, a book that looks worn and loved…just try it.

Thank you for joining me on this journey so far. I look forward to all the great books this next year will bring. If you have favorites I haven’t written about yet, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment. As much as I love recommending books, I love when others recommend favorites to me.

Library Book Sale

It’s National Library week. If you’ve read here for a long time, you know how much I love the library. I love finding new books at the library. I love getting recommendations from librarians who have literally read everything. I love seeing the list of upcoming programs and children racing to the children’s room excited for today’s book activity.

This weekend is one of my favorite book events….the library book sale. I look forward to this book sale for months. I’ve gone into the sale hoping to find certain books, and I have been lucky enough to find them. I’ve gone into the sale with no idea what book will find me, and somehow the great books manage to draw me to them, and I’m always thrilled to bring them home.

I’ve seen many library book sales advertised on my social media feed lately. I may be biased, but I think my library’s sale is one of the best. I think we might all say that about our town library and that’s ok. They can all be the best (but if you are in CT, check out the Friends of the Ridgefield Library Book Sale).

Many library book sales have a $5 fill a bag day. I love this day for parents looking to get their children excited about reading. There are some books I have hesitated to buy because I didn’t think it would hold my child’s interest. Library $5 fill a bag day, yes, you can get that book. Being able to have one of those yes days is amazing. Yes, you can get that book. Yes, you can get three different world record books. Yes, you can get a different version of a favorite book because this one has different illustrations. Yes, you can get 2 copies so your best friend can read it too. An hour of yeses and five dollars can make a child excited about books.

Even if your library doesn’t have a fill a bag day, there are so may great books for as little as a dollar. I saw children at the sale adding up their books asking their parents, “can I spend six dollars on all these books?” Developing a love of reading and practicing math without realizing they are doing either. That’s a pretty awesome day.

If you aren’t sure if your library has a book sale, check out their website. You will find so many incredible things there…possibly book sales, lectures, book talks, learning opportunities. Libraries are magical little places that serve as a doorway to so many different worlds.

King & Sendak’s “Hansel and Gretel”

Like most students learning a language, I took your usual school language classes. I learned to conjugate verbs and studied lists of vocabulary. I didn’t think I would ever learn to actually speak and hold conversation until one class changed everything. I signed up for a Grimms’ fairytales class in German. An entire class reading fairytales. This class changed my language journey, instead of trying to translate word for word, I started reading. I started learning meaning of words through context. The same way I read in English, I was learning to read in German. It was in that class that I truly realized the importance of stories and how we learn from them. This was of course two-fold, including both the lessons the Grimms fairytales taught and the way we read and hear stories teaching us language, imagination, and new perspectives.

Those stories have stayed with me. I love the original versions (far darker than the ones we tend to read today), retellings, picture book versions. When I saw the Stephen King retelling of “Hansel and Gretel” illustrated by Maurice Sendak, I needed to read that version.

For those of you who have been long time readers of on the children’s shelf, you may remember my Maurice Sendak story. For those who are newer here, many years ago, I was sitting in a waiting room and Maurice Sendak walked in. He sat down and immediately opened a book which he held up so no one would notice him; except I already had. I was trying to keep my cool, but he realized I recognized him. He lowered his book, made eye contact with me and smiled. It’s not a dramatically exciting story but it means so much to me. In that moment, I hope my excitement expressed my gratitude for his stories, appreciation of his illustrations, and that I truly believe great children’s stories impact us for the rest of our lives.

King and Sendak’s “Hansel and Gretel” is a beautiful retelling. The illustrations are everything I hoped they would be and more. This retelling brings a combination of the Grimm brothers and King into a dark and magical new tale with proper homage paid to the original story.

When you pick up your copy, be sure to remove the dustjacket…the book itself is beautiful. Definitely check out this incredible retelling of famous fairytale.

Finding Lost

I recently turned to social media for book recommendations that took place in the Pacific Northwest. I was traveling to Seattle and wanted a good book for the plane with ties to where I was going. I looked through the recommendations I received and saw a Holly Goldberg Sloan book, “Finding Lost.” I had no idea she had a book that took place in the PNW but I was thrilled to dive in.

I would read anything Holly Goldberg Sloan wrote. Literally anything. Her voice, storytelling approach, word choices…she pulls the readers into her story because it feels real. You will read her books and feel like a good friend is telling you their personal story. You will be invested in their story, you will know these characters, you will laugh with them, you will identify with them, you will think of them as friends.

I boarded the plane, opened my book and couldn’t put it down. Hours later I was looking out the window, finished book in hand, still thinking about those characters. In “Finding Lost” we meet Cordy Jenkins who lives on the Oregon coast in the “boat house” of a large property where her mother is the property caretaker. Her father died in a boating accident and her mother is saving for a new beginning away from Oregon, the one place Cordy and her brother have called home. Cordy finds a hungry lost dog who she brings home. Her mom, who doesn’t want a dog, tells Cordy and her brother they will find the dog’s home. This little dog, who they name Lost, wins all of their hearts and guides their new beginning in an unlikely place, right there on the Oregon coast.

Now here is the reason I love Holly Goldberg Sloan books for readers of all ages. There are the obvious reasons–I love her stories, I love her characters, but what I really love are these passages that make me think. I’ve texted photos of passages from every one of her books to friends. Her words, while written appropriately for children, will give readers of all ages something to think about. I remember in one of her previous books she wrote about photo albums and how they tell one family member’s perspective. I still think about that today.

I can’t recommend this book enough. Definitely check out “Finding Lost.” If you haven’t read “Short” read that one too (it’s one of my all-time favorites). Just save her name, and when you see a book she’s written, read it. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.

A Time to Keep

Earlier this week, I posted a photo on social media of a page from my favorite picture books, Tasha Tudor’s “A Time to Keep: The Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays.” I’ve revisited this book more times than I can count and when I opened it earlier this week to look at the February section, I was immediately pulled back in.

Tasha Tudor takes readers through the year, month by month. She makes the ordinary beautiful, special, and memorable. As a small child, I dreamed of climbing inside those pages, helping to make maple syrup, playing with the corgis, putting on plays in the carriage house, making candles for the upcoming year.

What I didn’t realize when I read this book when I was small, is that I learned from these pages that there is beauty in our own special traditions. They don’t have to be fancy or expensive; they just have to be meaningful to us. Celebrating these things as a family make us look forward to them.

While my family’s traditions look different than the ones in Tasha Tudor’s beautiful illustrations, I realize how important those rituals are to my family. I realize now that the way we talk about the year ahead and what we look forward to, stems from that book. Not that we are imitating what we see in the book, but rather that we look forward to our own traditions and how we make them special. I learned the value of tradition from those pages.

While I wouldn’t trade our traditions for someone else’s, I would still love to climb into that book and experience Tasha Tudor’s world. If you haven’t read this beautiful picture book, please check it out. It is honestly the most beautiful illustrations of family tradition (and if someone can figure out how to make a lit birthday cake float down a river like it does in the book, please share because I think I need to add that tradition).

The book I waited too long to read…

I was introduced years ago to Holly Goldberg Sloan books through a text message from a friend. She sent me a photograph of a page from “Counting by 7s” and said “you need to read this book.” That same friend texted me another page photo when reading “Short” because the writing is just that incredible that one page will draw you in. “Short” is on my list of the 10 best children books I’ve ever read.

So you can imagine any time I see a book written by Holly Goldberg Sloan, I need to read it immediately. Yet for some reason, I’ve walked past “Appleblossom the Possum” multiple times without picking it up. I didn’t expect a book about a possum to be as powerful a read as “Short” and “Counting by 7s.” I realized how wrong I was the moment I finally picked up a copy and started reading on a train ride into the city.

I could not stop reading except to dogear corners of pages and sending texts to friends about this book. I finished the book during my train ride, and I have three regrets. First, I regret waiting so long to read this book. Second, I wish I read it slower just to savor this story. Finally, I regret judging a book by its cover/title and thinking a book about a possum wouldn’t live up to books like “Short.” This book is just as amazing as Goldberg Sloan’s other books and what I love most about her writing is that each book is different and amazing in its own way.

Appleblossom is the smallest of her siblings, cautious, but also a little bit curious. A disagreement with her brothers over her curiosity about monsters (humans) leads to her falling down a chimney which starts this little possum on an awfully big adventure. I want to tell you more, but really, I want you to read this book and have the joy of watching this story unfold.

In addition to the story being captivating, I loved how the book covered the young possums learning appropriate possum behavior. It was like an introduction to sociology for children. The sociological concept that we are all actors learning our role in society was explained in a way that children would follow and understand…the young possums all learning possum behavior while bringing their own personalities into how they interpret those behaviors. This understanding of how we as humans (and possums in this case) learn and evolve in our roles was so well done throughout the book.

Holly Goldberg Sloan is one of the best children’s authors of our time. I will read any book she’s written, and I highly recommend you check out “Appleblossom.” Readers of all ages will enjoy this amazing story.

I’m back with a Halloween read

It’s been a while and I’ve missed sharing children’s books with all of you. For those new here, I write about favorite children’s and YA books (and why I think adults should read them too!). You may wonder why children’s and YA books. I have so many good memories of being read to as a child, reading books myself, and visiting my favorite characters in books. I love revisiting favorite childhood books and finding new amazing books to share.

Now that we are close to Halloween (my favorite holiday), I’m enjoying Halloween books. One book I love to reread this time of year is Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” It’s just scary enough without bringing on nightmares for a chicken like me.

I especially love that the story is local. I always enjoy when we can share books with children and bring them to life. The legend takes place in Sleepy Hollow, NY, a short drive from here. After reading the book with your child, visit Washington Irving’s home, Sunnyside or stop by the Old Dutch Church (yes, it is still standing) and while there you can visit Washington Irving’s grave out back. While there, cross the headless horseman’s bridge. To walk the steps of the story brings it to life in a whole new way. I have such great memories of my mom taking me to Sleepy Hollow and walking the same path Ichabod Crane walked in the legend.

I found an old copy of the legend on vinyl which is equally amazing. If you want more ways to bring it to life after reading, the old Disney cartoon is available on Disney+. For older readers, also check out Tim Burton’s “Sleepy Hollow.”

Check back in next week when I share my favorite YA book that builds off of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”

The one and only bob

Last week, Katherine Applegate released “The One and Only Bob” which follows Bob, the dog, from “The One and Only Ivan.” Ivan became one of my favorite characters and I wasn’t sure what to expect as we journeyed into Bob’s story.

If you haven’t read “The One and Only Ivan,” it is based on the true story of a gorilla named Ivan who spent over 20 years living in a cage in a shopping mall. The story is told from Ivan’s perspective. When I first read it, it was my first encounter with a story in “first person gorilla” but Applegate managed to capture this trapped gorilla’s voice in a way that was both authentic and believable.

In “The One and Only Ivan,” Bob, a stray dog, finds his way into the mall searching for food and squeezes himself into the gorilla cage to steal a piece of banana. He succeeds but also finds a friend in Ivan. He remains at the mall with Ivan and Ruby, an elephant also held in a cage in the mall, until rescuers save the gorilla and elephant.

One of the employees, whose daughter Julia often visited Ivan, Ruby, and Bob, takes Bob home and he becomes a part of their family. We begin “The One and Only Bob” with Bob living with Julia and her family. Julia’s dad has a job at the animal sanctuary where Ivan and Ruby now live and Julia and Bob are able to visit them often.

Bob is a tough little dog who had a rough life prior to living with Julia’s family. The entire story is told from his perspective. While Applegate captured the voice of Ivan so brilliantly, she managed to capture the very different, but equally entertaining, voice of Bob perfectly. Bob shares his view of the world as only a dog could see it.

While I read and found myself laughing out loud at times, it was this passage that made me realize Bob’s view of the world was more than just sharing his story, it was words of wisdom from a smart little dog.

Dogs ain’t perfect. But I’ll tell you one thing where we rule: tolerance.
For us, a dog is a dog is a dog. I see a Great Dane, I say howdy. I run into a puggle, it”s Glad to meet ya, how’s it goin’, smelled any good pee lately?
Go to a dog park and you’ll see. We are equal opportunity playful. You sniff my rear, I sniff yours.
You don’t see that with humans, obvious.y Constantly seeing differences where none exist. All those things like skin color? Dogs could care less. You think I won’t hang with a dalmatia ’cause he’s spotted? Or a sharpei ’cause she’s wrinkled?
I’m not saying I love every dog I meet. (Snickers comes to mind.)
But I’ll always give a dog the benefit of the doubt. Life is short. Play is good. And there are plenty of tennis balls to go around.

While it is challenging for many second books to live up to the first, “The One and Only Bob” is a great second book. Applegate’s talent for bringing animal voices to life is incredible and believable. Pick up a copy of “The One and Only Bob” to see what happens with all the incredible characters in “The One and Only Ivan.” You will laugh, you may shed a tear, you will be reminded of the importance of true friendship and perseverance.