Hark to the beautiful, bountiful baritone of Dylan Thomas, y’all, reading his own Christmas classic, A Child’s Christmas in Wales. So, which part is your favorite? I’ve got a weakness for the “junior firemen” and their prompt, enthusiastic action in the face of a rather dramatic turning point in the narrative.
(not exactly Wordless for Wednesday, am I? Oh well, I always was a contrarian!)
Ah, the great traditions of the holiday season. The roasted turkey! The Christmas tree! The dazzling lights! The shopping!
The Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre reading A Christmas Carol.
and Part II, which comes with an F-word warning, but is worth watching nonetheless.
Seriously, it’s way better this way. Hard to think of a dull “classic” that couldn’t be improved by being performed crazy karaoke-style by a pair of Hebridean socks (not Argyle, strangely). I can hardly wait till they get started on The Wasteland!
Christmas books aren’t only for Christmas, you know! But, they can help children understand a sometimes overwhelming time of year. And the best books of all teach them that there is more to the Christmas spirit than just presents under the tree.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
The Sweet Smell of Christmas (Scented Storybook)
The 12 Days of Christmas (Pop-Up Book)
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
Say howdy to the Evil LED Gingerbread Man, just the thing for serving while watching The Nightmare Before Christmas or The Ref or the first three-quarters of The Grinch, or any of the other wholesome, joyful family flicks with which the season is rife. (surely, SURELY there’s an Addams Family Christmas movie? Or were they Jewish?)
This demented confection comes to us (via Craftzine and WeMakeMoneyNotArt) fresh from the twisted confines of the Kitchen Budapest catalog, which offers free, downloadable (but PDF, therefore slooooooow) instructions right here.
The essential rightness of this project cannot be overstated. Right for the times, with its flashy, topical LED illumination and low power consumption; right for the subject matter, too: as with so many children’s tales, upon re-examination, the sweet little poem about the gingerbread man resolves into a cruel tale of frantic futility, nameless depravity, and malevolence the equal of anything spawned from the pen of Aeschylus. Re-read The Gingerbread Man at own risk, TeenyManolo assumes no liability: that gingerdude was/is the kind of protagonist your mother warned you about. Why, just look at that demented grin!
(Looking for the TeenyManolo Sweepstakes? Go here)
Now, now, some of you were a bit overeager on the last Listmania! post, Best Books for Younger Children. Here I present my final book list. I would say that these range anywhere from 3rd grade up to high school, but each child is different in reading skill and comprehension, so it is tough to say when they should pick up a particular book.
Many of these books are Newberry Award Winners, but I was quite surprised to find that some of the most beloved books did not win the award and were in fact honorable mentions. I was also surprised to find myself getting a little misty-eyed at the memory of some of these books. Here they are, in no particular order:
Black Beauty
Ella Enchanted
James and the Giant Peach
Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales
Ramona (series)
The Little Prince
The Secret Garden
The Chronicles of Narnia
My Side of the Mountain (series)
Harry Potter (series)
The New Way Things Work
Harriet the Spy
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn
Little Women
The Little Princess
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
The Black Cauldron
The Call of the Wild and White Fang
Tuck Everlasting
Bridge to Terabithia
A Series of Unfortunate Events (series)
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass
The Giver
Little House on the Prairie (series)
Anne of Green Gables (series)
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret
Holes
The Phantom Tollbooth
A Wrinkle in Time
The Wind in the Willows
Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
Shiloh
Charlotte’s Web
Because of Winn-Dixie
The Hobbit
A Light in the Attic
To Kill a Mockingbird
His Dark Materials (series)
Anything else?
Calvin and Hobbes, the perfect pair! If you are not familiar with the comic strip from Bill Watterson, do yourself a big favor and click on the picture.
Some studies have shown that children who have imaginary friends have better verbal and socialization skills than their peers. I’m not absolutely sure about that, but it is an interesting concept. Although I think they might reconsider if they were to hear my son boss his “crew” (as in pirate, not taggging) around. It’s a wonder those guys haven’t staged a mutiny by now.
I was one of those children who would receive a book as a gift and screech as loudly with glee than when it was a Barbie. My mother would take my sister and I to the library every two weeks so that I could check out a stack of books sometimes nearly half my height. I’m pretty sure the librarians knew us by name. In fact, I loved books so much that when I grew up, I earned my degree in Literature.
When I became a mother, I vowed that I would try to raise a child who was as voracious a reader as I am. So far, it’s working.
To me, a good book is one that makes such an impression that you fondly remember it, even years after. There seems to be a misconception that “great literature” must make a sweeping moral statement or somehow evoke the pathos of the human condition. That they must be gilt and leather-bound tomes that you must gird yourself for before even opening the book. To me, what makes great literature is it’s ability to resonate with the reader. Because a book that makes you giggle uncontrollably is just as important as one that imparts a lesson. These are some of my favorites, in no particular order.
Younger Children
The Rainbow Fish
Goodnight Moon
Officer Buckle and Gloria
Guess How Much I Love You
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
The Hundred Dresses
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Spot (series)
The Snowy Day
Click Clack Moo: Cows that Type
Alexander and the Horrible, Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
The True Story of Three Little Pigs
Tikki Tikki Tembo
The Cat in the Hat
Green Eggs and Ham
Frog and Toad (series)
Where the Wild Things Are
Madeline
The Real Mother Goose
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Harold and the Purple Crayon
If You Give a Mouse A Cookie
Lon Po Po
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh
The Velveteen Rabbit
Arthur (series)
Olivia
The Polar Express
Jumanji
Aesop’s Fables
Peter Rabbit and Other Tales
All right, what did I miss?
And next up- Best Books for Older Children
If you have watched any daytime television lately, you have seen Jessica Seinfeld, wife of Jerry, promoting her new cookbook. It features recipes for children, but with a twist. Faves such as grilled cheese or tacos look normal, but have healthy ingredients snuck into them to fool the kids into thinking they are eating the same old unhealthy versions they know and love.
Recent allegations have cropped up that Mrs. Seinfeld has plagiarized some of the recipes from a similar book written by someone not married to a famous comedian. In reading about the recipes that are alleged to have been plagiarized, they do indeed sound alike. But it seems to me that there are only so many foods that can be put into a particular dish and not be recognized, so it might just be coincidence that the recipes are similar. Then again, who knows?
But do they not know that stealing from one another is a time-honored tradition among moms? Whether it be ways to soothe a fussy infant or the number of that great babysitter, moms always have an ear out for getting the 411 on the latest. Why, some of the best tips I’ve ever gotten were from some women whom I was eavesdropping on at the park.
And really, masking healthy food is not a new concept. I mean, ever heard of a smoothie? You can dump all kinds of stuff in there. The idea for which, I need to give props to the lady with the big brown purse and unruly toddler! Thanks nameless lady, for helping me introduce wheat germ into my son’s diet with him being none the wiser!
Sometimes we have to be sneaky about getting the info, but we get it. If we can put pureed spinach in brownies, we are pretty much capable of just about anything, don’t you think?
I just hope the lady with the big brown purse doesn’t come after me, looking for royalties.