Charles Mikolaycak's Peter and the Wolf

 I finally found a copy of Peter and the Wolf illustrated by one of my favorites- Charles Mikolaycak.   And the glorious illustrations do not disappoint.  That red gate!  Interestingly this version is pure story and no musical reference at all.  

Peter and the Wolf

translated by Maria Carlson

illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak 1982

(a Samovar!)

The Changing Maze

The Changing Maze

Zilpha Keatley Snyder

illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak 1985

Life is always so serendipitous.  Just after finishing The Velvet Room, I stumbled across this picture book at the thrift store.  A short story by Zilpha Keatley Snyer and illustrated by none other than Charles Mikolaycak (a favorite!)

A magical tale told by an old Grandmother to her grandson has real life lessons to impart.  I love Mikolycak's artwork, my only (silly) complaint is that the pictures are drawn in a Victorian time period while I was imaging an older Medieval style.

 

Sister of the Birds and Other Gypsy Tales

This book has been our companion these chilly Spring nights.  As with all my kids, Charlotte is getting a healthy dose of fantasy before bed!  I'm familiar with many fairy tales and fables, many of which are just variations of similar stories, but these Gypsy tales are unlike any others that I've read before.  I particularly liked learning about their origin.   Jerzy Ficowski was sent to Auschwitz during WWII where he met many Gypsies and after the war he travelled with them collecting their stories, songs, and poetry.

Charles Mikolaycak does the illustrations, which is how I discovered the book in the first place.

Sister of the Birds and Other Gypsy Tales

Jerzy Ficowski

translated by Lucia M. Borski

illustrations by Charles Mikolaycak 1976

There's a handy pronunciation key at the back.

The Boy Who Tried to Cheat Death

 The Boy Who Tried to Cheat Death

Charles Mikolaycak 1971

I'm a fan of the illustrator Charles Mikolaycak so imagine my delight when I found this recently at the thrift store.  

It's a Norwegian folk tale in which a young man is given a barrel of beer for his wages.  When he shares a drink with an old man who is Death he strikes a curious deal.  Death will give his beer the power to heal sick people and save them from dying.  But if the young man sees Death at the head of their bed then nothing will save them and Death will have his way.

When the King's daughter becomes seriously ill, and Death is at the head of her bed, the young man finds a way to trick him and save the young woman.  In the end though, the young man finds that  Death can't be cheated forever.

Other books illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak:

The Highwayman

The Great Wolf and the Good Woodsman

Great Wolf and the Good Woodsman

Another beautifully illustrated book by Mikolaycak.

 

Great Wolf and the Good Woodsman

by Helen Hoover

illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak 1967

It's Christmas, a day when all woodland animals are friends.  Deer, squirrel and chickadee have come to the Good Woodsman's house where he feeds them.  Great Wolf hangs back because he knows the other animals are scared of him.

 But when the animals sense something is wrong and see that the Good Woodsman is injured and needs help, it is Great Wolf who saves the day.  And they all share a Christmas dinner together.

A nice story with a Russian flare, thanks to the illustrations.  Sadly our copy is pretty beat up.  Here are some more of the wonderful pictures.

The Highwayman

The Highwayman

Alfred Noyes

illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak 1983

For those of you familiar with the Anne of Green Gables movies you may recognize this poem.  Anne recites it at the White Sands Hotel.

Alfred Noyes is terrific. He has written all kinds of verse and short stories and novels. We like to read this poem (probably his most famous) very dramatically. The pictures by Charles Mikolaycak suit it perfectly. They are mostly grey and black and white with a touch of red for a scarf, Bess' ribbon, a soldier's coat, blood.  

The opening lines are some of my very favorite in literature.

The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees.
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas.
The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,
And the highwayman came riding-
Riding- riding-
The highwayman came riding, up to the old inn-door.