I have always loved Lauren Child but Ned has suddenly fallen in love with Charlie and Lola or Charlielola (all one word) as he calls them. We need to read the books every night now and I have discovered the joys of reading Lauren Child’s original books rather than the TV adaptation books. Has anyone else found them awkward to read?
Ned loves the moon. When we go out at night he is always looking for the moon and stars and his dad has even taught him to give a little wolf howl when he sees it.
On Friday I saw the beautiful picture book called The Sea of Tranquility and I just had to buy it. Written by The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time author Mark Haddon, it is based on his personal love as a child for space and his memories of the moon landing by Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong.
It is a lovely coincidence that today marks the 40th anniversary of that moon landing and the Apollo 11 mission.
The book is not new, it was actually released in 1996 but it has been re jacketed beautifully and has been made much larger than the original A4 size paperback it was then.
Mark’s language in this picture book is beautiful and you can sense it is very personal. He tells of being a little boy fascinated by space and what I really love is when he describes his excitement at staying up all night till dawn watching the grainy pictures on TV of Neil and Buzz landing on the moon. That must have been such an amazing moment as a child in 1969 to witness history in the making.
‘…And there they were,
on the flickery screen,
bouncing slowly through the dust
in the Sea of Tranquility,
like giants in slow motion.’
Illustrations by the Christian Birmingham, who is a big favorite of mine, make this story really special. His reproductions in paint of some of the original photos from the moon landing are absolutely incredible. They really conjur up the feelings of the young boy who is in absolute awe of outer space and the achievement of these men walking on the moon.
Both the story and the illustrations just evoke the time so well and make this a really peaceful and enchanting bedtime story that Ned – and I – will continue to enjoy for years to come. We also showed the book to Ned’s grandpa, or ‘bump-pa’, the other night who could relate to the story and has recently re read newspapers he has kept for 40 years since the landing.
‘And then I think of those two astronauts,
and how the prints they made with their big boots
will still be there tonight,
tomorrow night and every night
for millions of years to come.’
Recently I was discussing the books I loved as a child with my mum, getting some inspiration for When We Were Little Sunday, when she told me that when I was a baby she actually borrowed books of Haiku poetry from the library to read to me.
I thought this was really lovely and then I found this little board book called Haiku Baby by Betsy Snyder and I have fallen in love with it.
Flower
In tickly-toe grass,
a buttercup offers up
yellow nose kisses
The little blue bird on the jacket flits across the pages of this sweet book visiting his animal friends. Each gorgeous illustration is accompanied by a haiku celebrating an element of nature.
When I read this book I realised what a perfect form haiku is for reading to a baby; it is simple but melodic and soothing. I just find it really nice to find something different to all the other board books available and to find a book that has been so lovingly produced.
I am looking forward to sharing this gorgeous book with my new baby niece or nephew next year.
The author/illustrator Betsy Snyder is a blogger herself and recently mentioned we heart books on her blog, along with another of our favorite books Around the World With Mouk. The book Haiku Baby also has a really spectacular website, which even sings to you, it’s really worth a look.
||Haiku Baby available online from the we heart books/store||
||The Adventures of Mouk available online from the we heart books/store||
I’m a little ashamed to say this, but we didn’t have a copy of Goodnight Moon on our shelves until I bought a copy for Rowan this week. First published in 1947, I’m actually not sure whether this title was very prominent in Australia when I was growing up. It isn’t one I remember from my childhood, or even from my early bookselling days. Don’t know if I was under a rock – maybe other Aussies can shed some light…
I’m confident the same couldn’t be said of US readers, as the book seems to be have been a hugely popular classic there. It is of course very popular here now too. Numerous ‘celebrity mom’ citings of Goodnight Moon verge on the off-putting (especially if you have a perverse streak like me). Anyone from Hilary Clinton to Tori Spelling seems keen to mention Goodnight Moon. Even ‘our’ Cate and Naomi are fans.
At first reading, the text of Goodnight Moon may almost seem a little glib. But you soon realise its charm. The rhyming, lilting text is mesmerising and the repetition of the words and illustrations is just so comforting. It is the quintessential bedtime story.
The book got a resounding nod of approval from Rowan. He is going through a stage at the moment when he often resists new books, especially at bedtime when he refuses anything unfamiliar. But he picked up Goodnight Moon with some curiousity and happily listened to a first reading and then requested THREE further readings.
There’s a lovely post over on Collecting Children’s Books discussing the identity of the ‘quiet old lady’ who features in Goodnight Moon. Worth reading, especially if you remember the story from when you were young.
Ned and I bought this wonderful book last week and it is officially our favorite picture book of 2008. Cheeky Monkey is the new book written by Andrew Daddo and illustrated by Emma Quay, the team that also created the beautiful Goodnight Me.
Cheeky Monkey is one of those books that just grabs you from the first moment you pick it off the shelf. It gave me that little skip in the heart beat I get when I see something really beautiful.
The little boy Emma has created in this book instantly reminded me of Ned. He has the same beautiful toddler expressions that Ned has that make me ache with love for him. I adore how the character wraps his little leg around his dad as they get in the shower and how he leaps from the high chair for a cuddle just like Ned does.
Andrew Daddo’s text in this book is just simple and beautiful to read aloud. He uses all those funny little sayings that we all find ourselves using around little ones, well I do anyway. Silly Billy, Lucky Duck, Funny Bunny and of course Cheeky Monkey are all in there and leaving the most important till last, a big “I Love You!”
Goodnight Me was Andrew and Emma’s first picture book together and is also magic. Hear Andrew Daddo read their beautiful book here and you will fall in love with it too. On each page the little Orangutan baby says goodnight to a body part, reading this aloud is almost like a meditation, it is soft and lyrical making it perfect for bedtime. Emma’s illustrations are again incredible as she makes this little ape look so cuddly, he is a lovely fuzzy orange gangly creature against a stunning purple background that just makes the book so warm and inviting.
I have given Goodnight Me many times as a gift to little friends and also to one of my best girlfriends who has trouble sleeping. The other day some friends showed me their copy that I had given their little girl Amelie when she was born, much sticky tape had been used to repair the well loved pages as she and her little sister Olivia had wanted it read over and over again at bedtime.
Andrew and Emma obviously make a great team as they have created two instant classics and I can’t wait to see what comes next.
Ned’s dad and I are loving the Sir David Attenborough/BBC production Tiger – Spy in the Jungle. It is so wonderfully filmed using the most incredible technology of trunk cams, in which elephants are used to place cameras disguised as tree trunks in strategic positions to get the most amazingly close footage of the elusive tigers.
This documentary is intimately following the lives of four tiger cubs as they grow up with their mother in the jungle of India. They really are the most beautiful and majestic animals!
While on holidays recently we found a copy of Nick Butterworth’s Tiger in hardcover and after having watched the first episode of Spy in the Jungle we just had to have it. Ned’s dad thinks it is very cute and it has become one of his favorites. I have always loved Butterworth for his beautiful clean, crisp illustration style that has developed from his graphic design background.
The Tiger of this story is actually a kitten, called Tiger, who enjoys pretending to be the real thing with “great big tigery claws and a loud scary, tigery ROAR!” On the middle of one page we see the adorable little kitten, so soft and cute and then on the next page he transforms into a real tiger taking up the whole page with his enormity.
The text flows so nicely that this picture book makes for an excellent read aloud and toddlers can join in with the repetition “just like a real tiger“.
Tiger is a beautiful story about the joys of imagination and pretend. And as the book ends with Tiger in bed it is also a perfect bedtime story.
Nick Butterworth has also created a companion book called Tiger in the Snow.
A guest post by Nicole, first-time mum to Charlotte, 22 months.
At about 7:30pm every night Charlotte and I (and sometimes her Daddy) sink into her bean bag and read some books before she settles into bed with Dolly. Charlotte heads straight to her book shelf and starts pulling books out for Mummy to read to her that night. She has a couple of favourites that always need a once over before bed.
Continuing the music theme from Trudy’s guest post, one of Charlotte’s favourite books is Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. On the front cover you press a section which starts the nursery rhyme and lights up the sky with tiny twinkle stars. The twinkling stars mesmerised her as a baby. (It was always a good book to have on hand when she was unsettled.)
We never seem to get past the front cover of the book, once the song is over and the lights stop flashing, Charlotte says, “MORE, MORE” and we start the nursery rhyme again. Along with flashing lights, Charlotte also performs the actions to the nursery rhyme, very cute…
Once we get pass the front cover, the book is brought to life with some beautifully illustrated drawings. Five little creatures of the night take us on a journey to find out what twinkles in the bright night sky. It is very much a book that can be enjoyed over and over again.
The other book is Rabbit Ears by Amber Stewart, which Charlotte got for Easter from her Granny.
Hopscotch is a very determined little rabbit who knows exactly what he likes and what he doesn’t like. Sounds a bit like Charlotte and most other two-year-olds. What Hopscotch knows for absolute certain is that he does not like having his ears washed. Charlotte can relate to Hopscotch, as she knows for absolute certain that she does not like having her hair washed…
Hopscotch’s big cousin Bobtail comes to stay overnight. While eating some extra-chocolaty chocolate cake, Hopscotch inquires as to when he too can go and stay at Bobtails. Daddy replies when you are a big Hopscotch. While Hopscotch and Bobtail are in the bath, Hopscotch notices that bobtail is washing his own ears. This is where Hopscotch realises that maybe if he washes his own ears this would make him a big Hopscotch and he would be able to go and stays at Bobtails house.
Laura Rankin’s illustrations are exquisite and along with the story it makes for an every enjoyable read.
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