Tag: 1950s

25 Days – Book 1: Christmas is Coming

My apologies on a late start for this year’s Christmas book Advent list. This Christmas season is already shaping up to be even more packed with all the amazing festivities NYC puts on. It is so exciting to be here and seeing it all, but it is even more incredible to be living it with our toddler. It feels like the holiday is once again brand new to her and that means all the books are too! It is so fun to be “introducing” the holiday to her and wondering if she’ll remember anything this time around. I found myself picking out specific books for certain days as a way to build up and explain things as they arrive. What an added joy to this lovely season!

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Book Review: I Can Fly By Ruth Krauss & Mary Blair

Monday, I was struggling to decide what book I wanted to feature and feeling very wishy-washy about the whole thing. Then as I hung out our laundry and watched my daughter sort clothespins and my dog chase things around the yard, I was struck by the freshness of the season and the little things of nature and animals and pure imagination. And this book came to mind. Not an exact match for my thoughts, but a perfect book to celebrate the wonders of childhood. This is a cleverly simple book, with short lilting rhymes and stunning illustrations, that follows the vivid imagination of a little girl as she shares all the ways she can be just like her favorite creatures. Here is I Can Fly by Ruth Krauss, illustrated by Mary Blair, 1951.

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Book Review: Little Boy With A Big Horn by Bechdolt & Battaglia

This is a book I picked up at a used bookstore over the Labor Day weekend, Little Boy With A Big Horn, by Jack Bechdolt with pictures by Aurelius Battaglia. I had never seen it before, but the artist name caught my eye, not to mention his gorgeous illustrations. With a musical mayhem, people in lovely period dress, and an eventual saving-the-day moment, it has all the pieces for a fun and charming classic.

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Book Review: Petunia By Roger Duvoisin

Considering I’ve mentioned this book three times here already, it is appropriate that it is my first “official” book review. Petunia by Roger Duvoisin (pronounced “dyoo-vwah-zah”) was written in 1950 and was Duvoisin’s 14th book as far as I can tell. His career as an author and illustrator is immense. By my count, he wrote and illustrated 42 books and illustrated around 127 by other authors. His first book, A Little Boy Was Drawing, was published in 1932 and didn’t receive much attention. But thankfully, a kind editor encouraged him to continue and we now have a myriad of brilliant books to cherish. He received the Caldecott medal in 1948 for White Snow, Bright Snow and the Caldecott Honor in 1966 for Hide and Seek Fog both of which were written by Alvin Tresselt.

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