Bedtime Stories

I love my Pirate Papa (Leuck, Laura)
The Copycat (Hersom, Kathleen and Donald)
George and Martha, Back in Town (Marshall, James)
Out of the Egg (Matthews, Tina)
The Wizard of Oz (Baum, Frank L.)

A bit of everything tonight--old favorites, new twists. I've been looking forward to sharing "Oz" for some time now. Since my daughter has not even seen the film yet in its entirety, this seems like a good time to introduce the original. And it's nice to take a break from the American Girls!

I particularly liked Out of the Egg. More than simply a fractured fairy tale (Little Red Hen gets the works in this one,) it was a truly wise adaptation of a story that sometimes reads vindictive. The title is more than a simple reference to the birth of a chick; it is an expression of how children can break away from the patterns of their parents and teach lessons of their own.

While looking for images of "Pirate Papa" and "Copycat" I came across the websites of the illustrators. Check them out! I had not previously seen the work of Kyle M. Stone, but I am well-familiar with Catherine Stock. She has illustrated dozens of children's books. I've even reviewed one of the them, The Bora Bora Dress (Schaffer, Carole, Alexis.) I didn't think much of the book (as my review indicated,) but I loved Stock's illustrations. And indeed, I am blurbed on her site! No attribution, of course, but as a representative of School Library Journal, I recognize my words (just like a parent ^_^.)