Pete and Johnny to the Rescue

Pete and Johnny to the Rescue

Jorgen Clevin 1974

Interactive books are always fun.  This one has lots of things to look for and questions to answer as you read along.  There's even little stoplights on the pages to remind you to stop and answer the questions!   Pete the elephant goes to school while his friend Johnny stays home and takes care of their house on 14 Flower Street.  But as soon as school ends, Pete knows he has to get a job.  He wants to help people so Pete and Johnny start a Rescue Squad.  Soon they are performing all sorts of helpful tasks around their town.

Elephant end pages!

The Elephant Who Liked to Smash Small Cars

 There's a great children's toy store in Peddler's Village that also has a wonderful collection of books.  Recently we were browsing there and discovered this book.  Charlotte and I read it on the spot and when the story included the elephant getting smashed (don't worry, he's ok)  I knew it had to have been published years ago.   They just don't write children's books like this anymore!  

 The elephant's face and pure glee at smashing cars cracked us up.  We had to bring it home so I could read it to Chris.  Even he said, "What?!" at the story.  

The Elephant Who Liked to Smash Small Cars

Jean Merrill

Ronni Solbert 1964

The Blind Men and the Elephant

Charlotte has been requesting this book a lot lately.  She really likes the story.  It's a classic Indian tale often found in collections with other stories.  This version has wonderful illustrations with a simple color palate.

The Blind Men and the Elephant

Lillian Quigley

illustrated by Janice Holland

Basically the story is that six blind men describe an elephant.  But since they are all feeling different parts of the elephant's body, they are all describing it as something different.

"How smooth!  An elephant is like a wall."

"How sharp!  An elephant is like a spear."

"How wide!  An elephant is like a fan."

After an argument, the men learn that they must put all the parts together.

"Each of us knows only a part.  To find out the whole truth

we must put all the parts together."

The Elephant and the Bad Baby

The Elephant and the Bad Baby
Elfrida Vipont 1969
Illustrated by Raymond Briggs

An elephant takes a bad baby for a ride where he steals all sorts of treats and has the ice cream man, the baker, the butcher and others chasing after him. In the end he learns to say please and has his mother cook everyone pancakes. The pictures are fun and the story is ridiculous. It's a great book to read aloud.

Five Minutes Peace

It’s been one of those days already.

Five Minutes' Peace
Jill Murphy 1986

Mrs. Large just wants 5 minutes with her tea, a leftover cake, some toast and the newspaper without her children. But they follow her upstairs to the bathroom and can’t leave her alone. One has to play his recorder for her, one has to show her how well she can read her book, and the baby dumps all the toys in the tub.

"Where are you going with that tray, Mom?" asked Laura.
"To the bathroom," said Mrs. Large.
"Why?" asked the other two children.
"Because I want five minutes' peace from all of you," said Mrs. Large.
"That's why."


"Can we come?" asked Lester as they trailed up the stairs behind her.
"No," said Mrs. Large, "you can't."
"What shall we do then?" asked Laura.
"You can play," said Mrs. Large. "Downstairs. By yourselves. And keep an eye on the baby."


"Can I play you my tune?" asked Lester. Mrs. Large opened one eye. "Must you?" she asked.





Soon the children are all in the tub and Mrs. Large tries to make her escape to the kitchen for those precious 5 minutes. A short, funny little book (that most moms will appreciate).