Alice Cary

FictionHistorical Fiction

The Lincoln Highway

Review by Alice Cary

“I guess you haven’t had your adventure yet,” 18-year-old Emmett Watson tells his 8-year-old brother, Billy, who responds, “I think we’re on it now.” And indeed they are, having set out in Emmett’s powder-blue 1948 Studebaker Land Cruiser, planning to head west on the Lincoln Highway, America’s first transcontinental roadway. In light of their father’s recent death, their unlikely goal is to track down their mother—who abandoned them years ago—at a July 4th celebration in San Francisco. 

After mesmerizing legions of readers with the story of Count Alexander Rostov, sentenced in 1922 to spend the rest of his life in an attic room of a grand hotel in A Gentleman in Moscow (2016), Amor Towles takes to the open road in his superb, sprawling, cross-country saga, The Lincoln Highway. Although this great American road trip is quite a change of pace and scenery, Towles continues to transport readers, immersing them just as completely in the adventures of the Watson brothers he did in the seemingly claustrophobic lives of Count Rostov and his young sidekick, Nina. 

Like Nina, young Billy is a creative, intelligent and essential companion to his older brother, and like Rostov, Emmett has had his own brush with the law. As the novel opens in June 1954, Emmett has just been released from an 18-month sentence in a juvenile work camp, having landed on “the ugly side of luck” in a manslaughter case involving a teenage bully. Soon after the Watson brothers start their quest, however, their grand plans are upended by two friends of Emmett’s from the work camp, Duchess and Woolly, who “borrow” the Studebaker and head to New York—forcing Emmett and Billy to stow away on a freight train and head east in hot pursuit.

Packed with drama, The Lincoln Highway takes place in just 10 days, with chapters narrated by a variety of characters. Towles’ fans will be rewarded with many of the same pleasures they’ve come to expect from him: a multitude of stories told at a leisurely pace (the novel clocks in at 592 pages); numerous endearing and sometimes maddening characters; and pitch-perfect plotting with surprises at every turn.

As if that weren’t enough, the novel is chock-full of literary references: a Ralph Waldo Emerson quotation that sets the brothers off on their journey; allusions to The Three Musketeers (Emmett, Duchess and Woolly); a memorable Black World War II veteran named Ulysses; and scenes reminiscent of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Ultimately, The Lincoln Highway is Towles’ unabashed love letter to books and storytelling. 

Late in the novel, a character tells Billy, “There are few things more beautiful to an author’s eye . . . than a well-read copy of one of his books.” Towles has created another winning novel whose pages are destined to be turned—and occasionally tattered—by gratified readers.

The pages of Amor Towles’ novel are destined to be turned—and occasionally tattered—by numerous gratified readers.
Children's & YA

From far and near, babies all the same

Review by Alice Cary

Everyone wants to "Teach your children well," as the classic song suggests. If you know a new baby or have a favorite toddler, by all means introduce them to Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes, a jewel of a picture book by Australian author Mem Fox. With minimal text, and sweet illustrations by beloved British artist Helen Oxenbury, it's truly an international treat.

The cast features eight beautiful babies from around the world who laugh and frolic with each other on every page. The book's message of acceptance is summed up on the first few pages:

There was one little baby who was born far away.
And another who was born on the very next day.
And both of these babies, as everyone knows,
had ten little fingers and ten little toes.

Fox's rhyming prose makes the perfect bedtime read – aloud, with its soothing yet profound words. Oxenbury's roly – poly children – part baby and part toddler – convey wonderful expressions, ranging from inquisitiveness and watchfulness, to welcome and glee. While hailing from places near and far, they immediately learn to play together. Readers see a child "born on the ice" stand beside a penguin, and on the next page, readers meet a child born in a tent. Soon the two are fast friends, playing a joyful tug – of – war with one boy's scarf. Oxenbury is a master at drawing appealing round – faced children, and the muted colors she uses reinforces the soft, soothing message of Mem Fox's words. Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes gently presents – but never preaches – a satisfying lesson about humanity and international harmony.

Alice Cary counts fingers and toes at her home in Groton, Massachusetts.

Everyone wants to "Teach your children well," as the classic song suggests. If you know a new baby or have a favorite toddler, by all means introduce them to Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes, a jewel of a picture book by Australian author Mem Fox. With minimal text, and sweet illustrations by beloved […]
Children's & YA

Our Country’s Presidents

Review by Alice Cary

Did you know that problems with the United States Electoral College arose as early as the second presidential election? In 1796 John Adams became president with only a three-vote lead in electoral votes over his opponent, Thomas Jefferson. Therefore, Jefferson, the second-place finisher, became vice president, as the Constitution then dictated. The problem was that Adams and Jefferson belonged to two different political parties and had very different ideas about how our nation should be run.

You'll learn all of this and much more in Ann Bausum's fact-filled reference, Our Country's Presidents. I've always loved books like this, and they're perfect for young students, anywhere from third grade on up. It's ideal to have one or two around the house for school reports, browsing or a quick answer to a Who Wants to Be a Millionaire question.

As I leisurely perused these pages, for instance, I discovered that: James Garfield was the last president born in a log cabin and the first left-handed president; Chester Arthur's sister was his First Lady (his wife had died); Gerald Ford is the only president never elected to the offices of president or vice president.

Our Country's Presidents is well designed, with separate text entries for each leader, varying in length from a page or two to several. They provide a good overview of each life, including facts from childhood, family life and highlights of the administration. Also helpful is the accompanying fact box for each president, containing information such as nickname, political party affiliation, dates of birth, death, political terms and more. Along with plenty of photos, illustrations and charts, this lively volume also includes special sections on such topics as the White House and its history, kids in the White House and the electoral process. Timelines sprinkled throughout provide a sense of other coinciding news events, such as the sinking of the Titanic and the Wright Brothers' first flight.

Put this reference in the hands of young history scholars, and they'll have an excellent first lesson on our nation's leaders and basic American history, as well as loads of nifty trivia about the likes of "Give 'Em Hell Harry," "Tricky Dicky" and now, of course, "Dubya."

Alice Cary writes from her home in Massachusetts.

Did you know that problems with the United States Electoral College arose as early as the second presidential election? In 1796 John Adams became president with only a three-vote lead in electoral votes over his opponent, Thomas Jefferson. Therefore, Jefferson, the second-place finisher, became vice president, as the Constitution then dictated. The problem was that […]
Children's & YA

100 years down the Yellow Brick Road

Review by Alice Cary

Are your kids hooked on Harry? Do they need something else to whet their reading whistles? Then it's high time to introduce them to the book that was a publishing sensation 100 years ago. That honor belongs to none other than The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the best-selling children's book of 1900.

Sure, your brood has probably seen the movie, but the book is a different story. In fact, author L. Frank Baum eventually wrote 14 books about his magical kingdom.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published after many rejections as a modern fairy tale. Baum found a publisher only after he and his illustrator agreed to pay the publishing expenses.

To celebrate the centennial, publishers have issued a number of new editions of Oz, so grab your silver shoes (they're silver in the book, not ruby, like those Judy Garland wore) and dig in.

Start with the 100th Anniversary edition of The Wizard of Oz with superb illustrations by Michael Hague plus the complete original text. The price tag isn't cheap, but this is a top-notch edition with thick, quality pages, clean, large type and plenty of Hague's color illustrations.

The art is fresh, yet faithful to the story and the style of the original illustrations, which were done by William Wallace Denslow. Dorothy looks real; Toto is appropriately cute; the Scarecrow has warmly appealing features; the Tin Man looks stately and shiny, while the Lion is ferociously cuddly. As for the Wicked Witch of the West, she is horrid, old and mean just right.

My six-year-old son was immediately drawn into this book and remained enchanted as we read a few chapters each night. (The Wicked Witch and the Flying Monkeys aren't nearly so scary in the book as they are in the MGM movie, so there's less to fear about nightmares.)

Another good 100th anniversary edition is a lengthy (96 pages) yet condensed version of The Wizard of Oz, illustrated by Charles Santore. Here are eye-catching illustrations done in a more modern, action-packed style, a feeling even more pronounced by the larger format of this book.

Oz authority Michael Patrick Hearn writes in a short introduction: "Charles Santore has interpreted the story as a grand opera. Never has the Kansas cyclone seemed more threatening, the Land of the Munchkins more enchanting, the forests of Oz more foreboding, the Deadly Poppy Field deadlier or the Emerald City more magnificent than in his watercolors." For those truly engrossed in Oz, try the Oz Box Set, a set of three paperbacks that includes the original text and illustrations for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Marvelous Land of Oz and Ozma of Oz.

Although this boxed set has no color illustrations, the original artwork of Denslow (for the first book) and John R. Neill (for the second and third) is plentiful and lively, giving readers an interesting historical perspective. And any child who enjoys the first story will want to jump right into these subsequent adventures.

For a unique Oz experience, don't miss the commemorative pop-up edition of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz with art by Robert Sabuda. Sabuda's magical pop-ups spring to life with shiny foil, and even include magical spectacles provided for viewing the Emerald City. While the text is quite condensed, this is a dynamic introduction for young children and just plain fun for fans of any age.

Finally, true aficionados can turn to something new, a book called The Green Star of Oz. This one's written by Baum's great-grandson, Roger S. Baum, and features a leather finish and color illustrations by Victoria Seitzinger.

The tale begins with L. Frank Baum and his wife at their home, surrounded by a group of children as Baum wonders what the world and Oz will be like 100 years from now. The group is soon transported to Oz, where they encounter Dorothy, an ill Toto and plenty of familiar faces.

Oz is one of the most beloved children's tales of all time, so be sure you and your family don't miss out on a wonderful trip down the Yellow Brick Road.

Alice Cary writes from her home in Groton, Massachusetts.

Are your kids hooked on Harry? Do they need something else to whet their reading whistles? Then it's high time to introduce them to the book that was a publishing sensation 100 years ago. That honor belongs to none other than The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the best-selling children's book of 1900. Sure, your brood […]
Children's & YAPicture Book

Storybook collections are spinning yarns and teaching truths

Review by Alice Cary

Stories, stories, stories — that's what life's all about. September brings a whole new crop of storytelling books on everything from Jack Sprat to Jesus, for a range of ages.

Topping the list is a book making its U.S. debut after having been reprinted in England more than 40 times. How the Whale Became and Other Stories comes from the pen of the renowned, late poet Ted Hughes. He wrote these when he and his wife, poet Sylvia Plath, were living in Spain, but they weren't published until several years later, in 1963, after the births of the couple's two children. These are longer stories for older readers–11 lyrical tales about how such creatures as bees, tortoises, elephants, and hyenas came to be. In a prefatory note Hughes explains his premise for writing the collection: that in the beginning of the world, all living things were much alike and "had no idea what they were going to become." He goes on to explain how his selected menagerie arose. Jackie Morris's watercolors are a superb accompaniment, muted yet full of mystery and energy.

No storyteller is more famous than Aesop, the slave who lived in ancient Greece about 2,600 years ago. The Lion & the Mouse and Other Aesop Fablesprovides an excellent introduction for older preschoolers and young elementary students. Doris Orgel's short, two-page retellings are sprinkled with interesting facts about Aesop and his world. Orgel begins with a FAQ-like question-and-answer page that explains who Aesop was and why his fables have remained so popular all these years. Bert Kitchen's watercolor and gouache illustrations are stately, so real that one can practically feel the bristles of a wolf's fur or the hard shell of the slow-moving tortoise.

For a completely different change of pace, storyteller Alice McGill has been collecting slave lullabies since she was a child, hearing them passed down through generations of her family and friends. A CD is included with In the Hollow of Your Hand: Slave Lullabies, so you can read and hear McGill's resonant singing voice accompanied by gentle, simple instrumentals. Since slaves were often not allowed to learn to read or write and were punished for singing "unapproved" songs, these lullabies tended to be messages of trials, tribulation, and hope, often sung in secret. Along with each lullaby, McGill includes a brief, intriguing description of its origins and use. Michael Cummings has created a quilt collage illustration for each lullaby, adding rich, textured folk images that convey both story and history. This wonderful book and CD combination is truly a treasure for all ages.

More history and spiritualism can be found in Mary Hoffman's Parables: Stories Jesus Told(illustrated by Jackie Morris). Hoffman discusses Jesus's storytelling talents in a lovely introductory note: "[Jesus] was good at making up stories which were full of things that people of his time could understand. Sheep, grapevines, sowing seeds these were all familiar to the first people who heard these stories. I am quite sure that if Jesus were preaching today, he would have told stories about cars and mobile phones and computer games." Regardless of youngsters' religious beliefs, they will enjoy and learn from the short retellings of such familiar parables as "The Good Samaritan" and "The Prodigal Son." With each, Hoffman includes a short introduction and conclusion to help children better understand the parable's underlying meaning. At the end of the book is a list of the actual biblical books and chapters where each story originates.

The very youngest readers will enjoy the familiar verses found in Mother Goose Remembers. What's delightful about this book are Clare Beaton's wonderful, old-fashioned fabric art illustrations, which include one of Mother Goose's "feathers" stitched onto every page. This book is practically like having a grandmother or fairy godmother stitch a special volume of nursery rhymes for little readers.

In the same vein, check out The Random House Book of Nursery Stories, retold and illustrated by Helen Craig. Somehow, with the many children's books available today, modern youngsters often miss out on learning some of the classic fairy tales. Here's a collection of hits, including "Little Red Riding Hood," "The Three Little Pigs," "Goldilocks and the Three Bears," and "The Three Billy Goats Gruff." The retellings are short and straightforward, following the well-known plot lines. As with the Clare Beaton book, what makes this book fun are the whimsical illustrations. The troll, for example, that bedevils the three billy goats is a huge red lump of fur, a sort of Cousin It with protruding arms and legs. Don't miss the elves in "The Elves and the Shoemaker," which are cute little naked fellows streaking across the page. So whether you're in the mood for mirth, morals, or mammals, there's a new storytelling book awaiting your every mood!

Alice Cary spins her yarns in Groton, Massachusetts.

Stories, stories, stories — that's what life's all about. September brings a whole new crop of storytelling books on everything from Jack Sprat to Jesus, for a range of ages. Topping the list is a book making its U.S. debut after having been reprinted in England more than 40 times. How the Whale Became and […]
Children's & YA

Review

Review by Alice Cary

In our family, summer isn't summer without at least a week in the sand and surf. Our four-year-old has loved the beach since he was a baby, despite the time he tried to eat the sand. Here's a diverse collection of beach books I'm saving for our long car trip from Massachusetts to Maryland, where warmer waves and a family crab feast will be waiting.

Out of the Ocean (all ages) is both a splendid story and a field guide, the result of a lifelong love affair with the ocean. Author/illustrator Debra Frasier grew up in a house in Florida right on the Atlantic Ocean, and both her passion and knowledge of the sea are evident. The young girl narrating the book explains: "My mother says you can ask the ocean to bring you something. If you look, she says, you might find it." The rest of the text and Frasier's mixed-media collages show how many different things can wash ashore shells, sea glass, a wooden shoe, abandoned rafts, turtle skulls, tangled rope, and more as the girl and her mother explore the gifts from the ocean. This is a book that encourages readers to keep their eyes peeled by including a mesh bag for found items and a separate booklet for children to make a record of their own beach-combing search.

For her innovative illustrations, Frasier worked with photographs, cut paper, real objects, and silhouettes, all arranged on a tray of sand and photographed. In "An Ocean Journal" at the end, Frasier explains the origins of her many finds and adds interesting facts about such things as flora and fauna, sea turtle tracks, water, and sand. You'll definitely want to take this book on any beach trip.

In our family, summer isn't summer without at least a week in the sand and surf. Our four-year-old has loved the beach since he was a baby, despite the time he tried to eat the sand. Here's a diverse collection of beach books I'm saving for our long car trip from Massachusetts to Maryland, where […]
Children's & YA

Kid-approved reads

Review by Alice Cary

Scholastic's Hello Reader! series is an excellent at-home tool for both education and enjoyment. The titles are numerous and inexpensive, with an appealing range of reading levels, subjects, authors, and illustrators. Jeffrey Scherer's cartoon-style drawings are eye-catching in One Snowy Day (preschool-gr.1), a tale of animals banding together to build a new snowman and then saluting their new friend. The book is simple yet imaginative, as shown by a chipmunk balancing 10 cups, prompting the lively language, "Chipmunk juggled the cups." Reading primers have come a long way since the days of "See Spot run."

My son Will and I both give big thumbs-up to Zoom City (ages 1-up) and its vibrant illustrations for any car-loving toddler. Following the footsteps of his father, who drew the illustrations for Goodnight Moon, and his mother, a children's writer, Hurd has created a lively tale in which a dog family drives along a psychedelic-colored highway. The drive is hardly smooth "Faster!/Watch out! Too fast! CRASH!/DISASTER!" Tots will want to take this ride again and again.

I adore the writing of Daniel Pinkwater, plain and simple. Introduce a child to his wry humor and you'll have a hooked reader. Second-Grade Ape (illustrated by Jill Pinkwater, gr. 2-3) is a chapter book for more proficient readers. Freddie "Flash" Fleetwood finds what he thinks is a cat in the bushes, but turns out to be an ape. What will his parents and his teacher, Mrs. Hotdogbun, say about his new pet? With Pinkwater, the answers aren't always what you'd expect.

Check out the lovable terrier who appears in Don't Cut My Hair! (preschool-gr.1). Hans Wilhelm puts expressions on this canine that turn a text of few words into stories loaded with personality.

My son Will first paid attention to books with pictures of other babies, such as Maybe My Baby (photos by Paula Hible, newborn). Babies wear hats showing what careers they might choose astronaut or dancer, for instance with the reassurance that they'll always be loved, "whoever, however you are."

Calm children down with Charlotte Zolotow's Wake Up and Goodnight (illustrated by Pamela Paparone), two books in one. Read Wake Up, with a bear yawning, twin bunnies getting dressed, and a cat munching cereal; then flip the book over to enjoy Goodnight, in which the same crew gets tucked in. This book could easily become a beloved part of a child's nighttime ritual.

Scholastic's Hello Reader! series is an excellent at-home tool for both education and enjoyment. The titles are numerous and inexpensive, with an appealing range of reading levels, subjects, authors, and illustrators. Jeffrey Scherer's cartoon-style drawings are eye-catching in One Snowy Day (preschool-gr.1), a tale of animals banding together to build a new snowman and then […]
Children's & YAParentingFamily & Relationships

Making math fun for kids

Review by Alice Cary

Most of us are willing to introduce reading to young children; math is another thing altogether as Patricia Clark Kenschaft recognizes in her excellent book Math Power: How to Help Your Child Love Math, Even If You Don't. Kenschaft calls on her experience as an elementary school math teacher, professor of mathematics, and author of college math textbooks to allay parental worries and help us have fun with our children in learning math skills. She makes a strong case for math power "the ability to use and enjoy mathematics." Starting with fun and games with preschoolers and moving to primary-grade math success, Kenschaft is always aware of the role of parents and of teachers, telling mom and dad many skills they can encourage on their own and how to combat the "drill and kill" routines that have turned off so many kids from math.

Stuart J. Murphy is the author of HarperCollins's new series of 15 hardcover books based on visual learning the MathStart series. Categorized by three age groups, covering ages 3 to 8, these stories carefully integrate the illustrations with fun-to-read stories to teach basic math skills. "Kids don't experience math in problem number sets," says Murphy. "They experience it through stories in their lives." In A Fair Bear Share (illustrated by John Speirs, ages 6 and up), Mama Bear sends her four cubs out to pick nuts, berries, and seeds for a blueberry pie. Three of the cubs pick industriously, but their little sister just wants to play and play and play. Alas, when the harvest is counted, in groups of ten with remainders, she must return to pick her "fair bear share." Then Mama Bear makes a blue ribbon blueberry pie.

Each book in the series has additional suggestions at the back for using the concept it demonstrates (shapes, bar graphs, time lines, comparisons, fractions, etc.). Murphy wants parents to expose their children to mathematical concepts from the beginning just as they do with language. Include comments about the obvious math in what they see and do as they fold and sort laundry, count the steps as they go downstairs, watch the odometer in the car. Make math part of daily living.

Number combinations is the underlying theme of two new books by popular author and artist Bernard Most. Children who are three-year-olds and up will be entranced with the playful dinosaurs in A Pair of Protoceratops and A Trio of Triceratops. In the former, the happy prehistoric animals paint pictures, paste paper, play ping pong, etc., teaching the concept of two as well as sharing with a friend. Fun alliterative activities also abound (it must be catching!) in A Trio of Triceratops. With books like these, an investment of nothing more than a little bit of time can give young readers and counters workouts that spell f-u-n.

Another good math title is Monster Math: School Time (illustrated by Marge Hartelius, preschool-grade 1). As a family of dinosaur-like monsters go through their day, from waking till bedtime, the time of each activity is noted with both a digital clock and an "old-fashioned" clock with numbers and two hands. Burns suggests that children make their own time book, showing what they do at certain times of the day, an activity that teaches time-telling as well as gives families a nice keepsake detailing their preschooler's routine. In addition, Burns outlines the rules of two games, "The Timer Game," and "The Monster Math Game," both of which sound easy and fun.

Most of us are willing to introduce reading to young children; math is another thing altogether as Patricia Clark Kenschaft recognizes in her excellent book Math Power: How to Help Your Child Love Math, Even If You Don't. Kenschaft calls on her experience as an elementary school math teacher, professor of mathematics, and author of […]
Children's & YAPicture Book

Tis the season for holiday books

Review by Alice Cary

If you are in the market for a Christmas book this season, you will not be disappointed. The offerings are varied and rich the tough part will be deciding which ones to buy! Grandfather's Christmas Tree (ages 4-8) has everything a good holiday book should have: gorgeous illustrations (by Thomas Locker, one of my favorite children's artists); a heartfelt story (by Keith Strand, writing about his grandfather's birth); and a bit of a miracle. As we say good-bye to the 1900s, it's fun to read this Little House on the Prairie-like tale of husband and wife settlers in 1886 Colorado, all alone in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, watching the snow pile up around them, and wondering how they will keep their infant boy warm. The only available firewood is a stand of spruce trees outside their cabin door that provide shelter for a family of geese. The couple can't bear to destroy the birds' home. Not surprisingly, the ending will warm readers' hearts in festive fashion.

On a much lighter note, the classic Eloise at Christmastime by Kay Thompson is back in print after nearly 40 years, one of a handful of volumes about this spunky heroine who lives in the tippy top floor of New York City's Plaza Hotel. Hilary Knight's whimsical drawings are pure delight, and the text positively sparkles ( You can hear Nanny say/ÔOh trinkles/my dear/Oh drinkles and skinkles of fun/It's Christmas/ Christmas/Christmas Eve/Oh my/there's a lot to be done' ).

Meet a family living in more spartan quarters than the Plaza Hotel in Not Enough Beds: A Christmas Alphabet Book by Lisa Bullard, illustrated by Joni Oeltjenbruns, (ages 5-8). Here's a dilemma many families face when relatives arrive: where do you put them all? Children will laugh at the imaginative solutions, as Aunt Alison snores in an overstuffed chair, while my young brother Ben stretches out on a stair. Smart Cousin Constantine brought his own cot, and so on. Watch, too, the amusing antics of a mouse family prancing about on each page.

For a unique twist on the holiday theme, try Pigs on the Move: Fun with Math and Travel by Amy Axelrod, illustrated by Sharon McGinley-Nally (ages 4-9), one in a series of books devoted to a pig family and their explorations of various math themes. When Mr. and Mrs. Pig and their two piglets miss their plane from Texas to Boston, they are forced to take a series of flights that take them through several time zones, thus allowing readers to consider how both mileage and time add up. The story alone is enjoyable enough, however, should you choose to leave math discussions until the end. There's also a nifty map of the United States showing time zones and funky nicknames of assorted cities, such as Porkopolis, Ohio.

'Twouldn't be Christmas without some new version of Clement C. Moore's The Night Before Christmas, and this year illustrator Max Grover offers a bright and cheery edition. His childlike acrylic style brings fun and surprises, including Santa landing in the fireplace amidst a cloud of soot and two charts of Santa, with Little Round Belly and Nose Like a Cherry appropriately labeled. Grover's interpretation is a particularly good choice for youngsters hearing the famous poem for the first time.

The young will also be thrilled by another of David A. Carter's pop-up bug extravaganzas, The 12 Bugs of Christmas. His variation of the traditional carol features, of course, Carter's signature crazy critters, including the likes of a fruitcake bug, snowflake bugs, lovely glowing bugs, and tinsel bugs, all wrapped up in flap packages waiting to be flipped.

Travel to San Juan, New Mexico, for Farolitos for Abuelo by Rudolfo Anaya, illustrated by Edward Gonzales (ages 5-9), the story of Luz, whose beloved abuelo (grandfather) dies in a river accident as he saves the life of a careless boy. While learning to deal with her loss, Luz puts farolitos (candlelit lanterns) around his grave at Christmas in this sad but uplifting tale.

More farolitos are featured in Tomie de Paola's wonderful The Night of Las Posadas (ages 4-8), about an annual procession honoring Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus in Santa Fe, New Mexico. When the couple playing Mary and Jesus gets caught in a snowstorm and misses the ceremony, a pair of mysterious replacements show up in what the village elder, Sister Angie, immediately recognizes as a miracle of the manger. This is a simple yet powerful story, accented by dePaola's always luminous art.

The Legend of the Christmas Rose by William H. Hooks, illustrated by Richard A. Williams, is a nativity story featuring nine-year-old Dorothy, who tags along with her older shepherd brothers on their journey to Bethlehem. She has nothing to give the newborn babe until an angel appears and bestows tiny white flowers (Helleborus niger), blossoms known for their beauty as well as curative powers.

Don't forget the youngest on your holiday lists, who will enjoy board books such as:

The First Christmas: A Christmas Bible Playbook (Reader's Digest Children's Books, $4.99, 1575843285).

My First Christmas Board Book (DK Publishing, $6.95, 0789447355), filled with eye-catching photographs of everything from Christmas trees, toys, and snowmen to nativity scenes.

Christmas Lights (Little Simon, $4.99, 0689822693), a glow-in-the-dark board book with collage illustrations of holiday scenes.

Last but not least, for a selection you can really sink your teeth into, try New Baby's Nativity (Standard Publishing/ Reader's Digest Children's Books, $10.99, 1575843293), a cloth book with an attached cloth angel that can be moved from page to page.

Ho, Ho, Ho, and Peace on Earth!

If you are in the market for a Christmas book this season, you will not be disappointed. The offerings are varied and rich the tough part will be deciding which ones to buy! Grandfather's Christmas Tree (ages 4-8) has everything a good holiday book should have: gorgeous illustrations (by Thomas Locker, one of my favorite […]
Children's & YA

Lullaby and goodnight

Review by Alice Cary

Ralph Waldo Emerson had the right idea when he wrote, There was never a child so lovely but his mother was glad to get him to sleep. Here are the latest sleepytime books to help get your little lovelies to bed.

Start with two choices that make a super combination. First, Hush Little Baby: A Folk Song with Pictures (all ages). Marla Frazee's lively illustrations are based on living history studies at Fort New Salem, West Virginia. Her splendid details of life in a mountain cabin bring plenty of fun to the classic lullaby.

Next is Hush, Little Alien, a sci-fi parody of the same lullaby. Daniel Kirk's little green aliens will win your heart as the father romps through extraterrestrial orbits, singing lines like, If that shooting star's too hot, Papa's gonna find you an astronaut! Both books are standouts, and even more fun together.

More traditional poems await in Twilight Verses Moonlight Rhymes. Mary Joslin has compiled a variety of verse, including many familiar (Wee Willie Winkie and Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star), many new, and some speaking of God. Liz Pichon's illustrations make the text sing even louder.

My own childhood bedtime ritual often included Remy Charlip's classic book Fortunately. Charlip has a new bedtime tale, Sleepytime Rhyme (all ages), a mother's simple yet elegant ode to her child. No doubt parents and children will soon memorize the rhyme, which begins: I love you./I think/You're grand./There's none/Like you/In all the land. The illustrations are sparse and ethereal, but fun; the rhyme is full of emotion without gushing.

Young children will enjoy the simple adventures of a girl named Poppy in Melanie Walsh's Hide and Sleep (ages 1-4). Poppy wants to hide at bedtime, but the hamper is too smelly, the dog bed occupied, and so forth, until finally her bed is just right.

My five-year-old loves Mem Fox's Sleepy Bears (ages 3-6), in which a mother bear prepares her six youngsters for hibernation by giving each his or her own special rhyme. One bear gets a pirate poem, for instance; another becomes a queen with a castle. Be sure to study Kerry Argent's lively watercolors as a stuffed elephant gets passed from bear to bear, the candles get shorter as the evening passes, and one bear munches on cereal then brushes his teeth in bed.

Another book worthy of close scrutiny is Morning, Noon, and Night (ages 3-8). Newbery Medalist Jean Craighead George delivers another of her superb meditations on nature, as animals from the East to West Coasts awake, work, rest, and play during the course of a day. Wendell Minor's illustrations are, as usual, breathtaking. Don't miss the endnotes that identify the animals on each spread and the location of their varied habitats.

One final bedtime rhyme is Lynn Plourde's unusual poem, Wild Child (all ages). As Mother Earth puts her Wild Child to bed, her offspring pleads for a song, a snack, and other bedtime treats. The rewards are all the fruits of fall, such as apples and red and golden leaves and the Wild Child turns out to be Autumn. No sooner is Autumn asleep than another child stirs, and this one is Winter. Greg Couch's acrylic and colored pencil illustrations set just the right earthy, autumnal mood. Sweet dreams!

Ralph Waldo Emerson had the right idea when he wrote, There was never a child so lovely but his mother was glad to get him to sleep. Here are the latest sleepytime books to help get your little lovelies to bed. Start with two choices that make a super combination. First, Hush Little Baby: A […]
Arts & CultureArt

A Caldecott Celebration

Review by Alice Cary

The Caldecott has been the Emmy of children's book illustrating since 1938, recognizing the year's most artistic and innovative picture book. Where do artists get their ideas? How do they translate these ideas into actual books? What changes do the original story and art undergo? How do illustrators feel when they hear they've won the big prize?

A Caldecott Celebration lets readers step into the studios of Robert McCloskey (Make Way for Ducklings), Marcia Brown (Cinderella), Maurice Sendak (Where the Wild Things Are), William Steig (Sylvester and the Magic Pebble), Chris Van Allsburg (Jumanji), and David Wiesner (Tuesday). Adding historical overview to the individual profiles, historian Leonard Marcus selected artists who represent different decades, starting with McCloskey in the 1940s to Wiesner in the 1990s. The volume also includes a complete list of Caldecott winners as well as a glossary explaining a few technical terms.

Art is the major focus here, including photos of each author and their dummies, preliminary sketches, and finished artwork. The transformations that take place between concept and final book are intriguing. For example, Where the Wild Things Are began as an odd, narrow little book shaped like a ruler, entitled Where the Wild Horses Are. At one point, Sendak wrote in his notebook, "ABANDON!!!! dreadful story!!" Thankfully, he didn't heed his own advice. He decided he didn't draw horses well, however, and enjoyed letting his imagination run free with Wild Things.

Marcus's short but wide-ranging discussion of each artist will appeal to both older school-age children as well as adults. Who couldn't help but be charmed to hear that for Make Way for Ducklings, McCloskey consulted with duck experts, studied duck specimens, and brought 16 ducks home for up-close study? (My friend, Elizabeth Orton Jones, the Caldecott winner for 1945, confirmed this.) And who would guess that the members of McCloskey's beloved Mallard family were not originally called Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack? Instead, they started out as Mary, Martha, Phillys, Theodore, Beatrice, Alice, George, and John. Would that family of ducks have won the Caldecott? Maybe not.

My only gripe about this lovely little book is that it isn't longer!

The Caldecott has been the Emmy of children's book illustrating since 1938, recognizing the year's most artistic and innovative picture book. Where do artists get their ideas? How do they translate these ideas into actual books? What changes do the original story and art undergo? How do illustrators feel when they hear they've won the […]
Children's & YA

Holiday books harvest laughter and warmth for young readers

Review by Alice Cary

Religious Christmas Tales

I have long been an Ashley Bryan fan, so I highly recommend his Carol of the Brown King (all ages), with a text of five poems by Langston Hughes and another that Hughes translated from Spanish. Here Bryan continues his tradition of exploring African-American spirituals and poetry, with his trademark fireworks-like splashes of color in tempera and gouache paintings. An invigorating feast for the eyes!

Joseph's Story (ages 4-up) is a lushly illustrated (by George Hinke) and clearly told (by Patricia A. Pingry) narrative. A nativity story focusing on Joseph's thoughts and concerns, each spread contains a note explaining historical details and context, such as the fact that Joseph would not have been present at Jesus' birth (men were hustled away during childbirth). Lovely and informative.

Remember the Christmas classic The Littlest Angel? Recently the great niece of the author, Charles Tazewell, discovered one of his previously unknown manuscripts, now published for the first time. The Littlest Uninvited One (all ages) tells of a mischievous boy in heaven who longs for a dog. Michael finally gets his wish, but when the pup runs loose, all h – breaks loose behind those pearly gates. The Littlest Uninvited One is a touching story for dog lovers and older children (at least 4 or 5; the language is sophisticated) alike.

Another book with an imaginative twist is Saint Francis Celebrates Christmas, retold by Mary Caswell Walsh, illustrated by Helen Caswell (ages 3-6). Based on Thomas of Celano's 13th-century biography, the simple text explains how St. Francis pulled together the world's first living nativity scene. The language is just right for preschoolers, although, as an adult, I would like to have seen a short historical note.

The most unusual nativity story I've seen of late is The Bear's Christmas (ages 3-6), set in snow-covered lands. A hungry bear leaves his winter den in search of food, only to encounter shepherds, angels, and a mother and baby in a barn. The mother offers the bear a berry-covered branch, allowing the bear to return home for a long, deep sleep. This is a sweet, simple, and snowy fable.

Alice Cary is a reviewer in Groton, Massachusetts.

Religious Christmas Tales I have long been an Ashley Bryan fan, so I highly recommend his Carol of the Brown King (all ages), with a text of five poems by Langston Hughes and another that Hughes translated from Spanish. Here Bryan continues his tradition of exploring African-American spirituals and poetry, with his trademark fireworks-like splashes […]
Children's & YA

Holiday books harvest laughter and warmth for young readers

Review by Alice Cary

Twas the season of giving
And all through the stores,
Await bright racks and shelves,
Filled with holiday books galore!

Indeed, this year's crop seems especially good, starting with Bonny Becker's hilarious The Christmas Crocodile (4-8). In an old Victorian home to a young girl named Alice Jayne and her eccentric relatives (including prudish Aunt Figgy and world adventurer Uncle Theodore) comes a mysterious, very hungry present a crocodile. While Uncle Theodore thinks the beast would make splendid shoes, and Figgy wants him sent to an orphanage, Alice Jayne would prefer to keep the croc, despite the havoc his chomping jowls wreak. Artist David Small, well known for his work in Imogene's Antlers, The Library, and The Gardener, makes this lively story all the better with his fanciful illustrations that'll have you laughing out loud (especially when Aunt Figgy's toes get nibbled).

Illustrator Jan Brett, creator of holiday cheer in books such as The Wild Christmas Reindeer and Christmas Trolls, now puts her distinctive touch on The Night Before Christmas. Her elaborate designs combine Norwegian coziness (as seen on the reindeer's blankets and the intricately carved sleigh) with Victorian visions of sugarplums and stockings. Brett adds her own twist to the classic by including two stowaway elves in Santa's sleigh.

Julia and Robert Van Nutt have created a possibility-filled world in A Cobtown Christmas, the first in a series of stories about folks in an 1845 American town. The story unfolds in diary entries written by a spirited ten-year-old named Lucky Hart. As the town prepares for Christmas and a special concert in which Lucky will sing, a blind man who doesn't speak English arrives in town. It's nice to hear this is a series, because Cobtown is a cheery, action-packed place readers will look forward to revisiting.

Young readers will enjoy Nancy Tafuri's Counting to Christmas (ages 2-5), in which a young girl describes her favorite family activities: making cards, baking cookies, wrapping presents, and stringing popcorn and cranberries. The spare text and bold images make this a perfect choice for toddlers and young preschoolers. Also included are recipes and instructions for the activities described within the story.

Alice Cary is a reviewer in Groton, Massachusetts.

Twas the season of givingAnd all through the stores, Await bright racks and shelves, Filled with holiday books galore! Indeed, this year's crop seems especially good, starting with Bonny Becker's hilarious The Christmas Crocodile (4-8). In an old Victorian home to a young girl named Alice Jayne and her eccentric relatives (including prudish Aunt Figgy […]

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