Past Eight O'Clock

Since they share a room often Madeleine will listen to the books I read to Charlotte.  And the other way around.  Last night Madeleine read to us a very funny Edgar Allan Poe story she found called "Loss of Breath".  I had no idea Poe wrote humorous stories and this one was pretty outrageous!  (I don't think Charlotte got much out of it though.)

I'm quite partial to Joan Aiken and I thought this was a perfect bedtime book (it's even called Goodnight Stories).  Starting while we were on vacation in Illinois, we read one every night.  Madeleine listened for a few nights and thought that some were better stories than others.  ("Oh, Can Ye Sew Cushions?" was in my opinion the very best one.)   But each of them has that mixture of magic and  feel of Dickens that is particular to Aiken (Leon Garfield and Roald Dahl as well).  

Past Eight O'Clock

Goodnight Stories

Joan Aiken

pictures by Jan Pienkowski

The fantastic silhouettes of Jan Pienkowski are scattered throughout the book.  Each story is based on a lullaby and includes some rhyming verses. 

There was one thing about their house that they didn't know.  Every year, on a special day in winter, when the sun shone upon one particular spot on the floor in one particular room- if somebody- just at that moment- happened to be singing a special note of a special song- then, something might happen. 

More books by Joan Aiken:

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

The Moon's Revenge

Other books illustrated by Jan Pienkowski:

Christmas

Two of Everything

Two of Everything

Lily Toy Hong 1993

This was a cute Chinese fable.  (The illustrations started to grow on me).  A poor farmer and his wife discover a large copper pot that multiplies anything that is put into it.  There's the potential for disaster, but comedy ensues and it all ends up all right.  

We Help Mommy

Another sweet Eloise Wilkin book about how a little boy and his sister help their mother throughout the day.

We Help Mommy

Jean Cushman 1959

illustrated by Eloise Wilkin

Charlotte saw this little clothes tree and wanted it so badly!  I think my mom played with a little clothesline set when she was a girl.

(Charlotte loves how she illustrates the bedrooms.)

Other books illustrated by Eloise Wilkin:

Baby's Christmas

We Like Kindergarten

My Big Book of the Outdoors

Ballad

Ballad

Blexbolex

Here is a neat book with graphic appeal.  The story is odd and hard to explain (and there's something about it that reminds me a little of  13 Clocks by Thurber.)

This sort is about a child who goes home from school along the same road every day and how his small world suddenly becomes enormous.  It's a story as old as the world- a story that begins all over again each day.

Two Roman Mice

In May Madeleine was off to the Latin Convention held at Penn State.  She always comes home with fun stories.  We are fortunate that her school has such a robust Latin program and a couple dedicated teachers.  She's been taking Latin since 7th grade and will be teaching it in the elementary schools this year.  I picked up this book with her in mind.

Two Roman Mice

Horace

retold and illustrated by Marilynne K. Roach 1975

I had no idea that the original Country Mouse/City Mouse was a fable told by Horace at the end of his poem Satire II (the original Latin is in the back of this book).  Even the illustrations add to the translation- the decorative borders are based off of Roman frescos, the folding doors in one picture are similar to ones in Herculaneum, the watchdogs are Molossian hounds.  And I liked the mouse names of 'Rusticus' and 'Urbanus'.

Little Brown Bear

 Little Brown Bear

Elizabeth Upham 1942

illustrated by Marjorie Hartwell

This was a popular bedtime read for Charlotte.  It's an old book, but she got such a kick out of the stories, especially the "Little Brown Bear's April Fool's Day" one.  When Little Brown Bear plays his trick on Father Bear Charlotte just laughed and laughed.  The next day she even tried to play it on me!  (I knew what she was up to but I went along with it).

Sometimes these simple vintage books really are the best.  I'm always drawn to them because of the artwork and the colors, but many times we enjoy the writing just as much.