Tag: childrens-lit

I finished 2019 by reading these two children’s books.

The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright

I really liked this one. It was published in 1941. With the Agatha Christie books and this one, I was put into a real pre-war mood. The novel is quite similar to the Boxcar Children as well.

I thought there was a lot of clever writing and it makes me miss this early 20th century writing style. No one writes like this anymore.

December 29-30, 2019.

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

This has a good premise. It was written and set in the 1960s and I definitely thought of “Mad Men” in a couple of moments. There was some fun moments in the book, but I didn’t love it like I did with the Saturdays or other children’s books. I can’t say why exactly. It’s similar to how I felt about Pippi Longstocking.

December 31, 2019.

Part of my spontaneous reading challenge to read children’s books. I have heard about this book growing up. I vaguely remember the 1997 movie but I never watched it. The only time I really became interested was when Studio Ghibli released Arrietty.

I like the descriptions and the world building but the book did not win me over until the last third. I think the movie is better than the book in this case.

I do become more invested in the book by the end and I intend to read the sequels. They are easy to read and I like the light fantasy of this book and others (Indian and the Cupboard was the same). It’s gentle fantasy fiction because it is for children. Fantasy for adults or young adults have become saturated and a bit too overwrought these days. I don’t find it as escapist anymore.

These books are working for me. I think I will try to rewatch Arrietty over the holidays and read the sequels to this book.

Read December 21, 2019

When I finished Voracious a few months ago, I was inspired to put a few children’s books on hold. As a kid, most of my non-school book discoveries were self-initiated so I missed out on some of the books below.

Home Price by Richard McClostky

This was a cute one to start off with. It was published in 1943 and has all the references and illustrations from that time. Homer is an industrious young protagonist. I liked that he tamed and kept a pet skunk. The best story in the book is the one about the doughnuts.

Read October 15, 2019

The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner

This was very sweet and nice. It was written in the 1930s. I found it relaxing as the characters were so nice. It may be a bit too cute and idyllic but there is something classically about this children’s book. This was the first one I really wished I had read when I was a kid.

Read October 20-21, 2019

The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks

I really enjoyed this. It may have even been worth a standalone post. It has a lot of heart and outside from some dated concepts; I actually thought the writer was thoughtful about the character development. Now I’m really curious about the adaptation and the sequels.

Read November 13, 2019

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

I have mixed feelings on this book. It’s not that I did not like it or the characters, but there were times where as an adult, I did not have much patience with Pippi. On the other hand, I do like her. She’s a true rebel and nonconformist. It took me longer to read this book because of it. I think this is a good children’s book but it did not work for as well as the others.

Read November 27, 2019 – December 5, 2019

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Overall, I’ve found reading children’s literature really enjoyable as compared to other books. The stories are straight forward and they don’t take as much time. Philosophically, I like the optimism of these books which can be sometimes missing in adult day to day life. I have put more children’s books on hold.

The more I re-read these books, the more uncomfortable I am with Charles Ingalls. While the books have some lovely moments especially with Laura exploring the wild and the glimpses of frontier life, I get annoyed with Pa.

He buys lumber for a house in the spring on credit of the wheat he will harvest later. It is a big lack of foresight because the last wheat harvest by the previous owner was poor. He does not research the area they move into very much at all. Unsurprising that they have locusts for two years. It’s horrifying to read though.

On a positive note, I continue to like Laura. She relatable to most girls. Aside from the moment where Ma gives Charlotte away, I have to hand it to Caroline. She does very well under the circumstances. I have also liked Christmas scene in the book so far. I like how it was a cherished time of family, love, and unselfish behaviour among people. There is a deep sense of gratitude and warmth in the gift scene. I also think Caroline and Charles do really love each other. Charles loves his family, and I feel sorry for him and his family.

I continue to have mixed feelings about the books, but some of my favourite moments will come as Laura grows up.

Reread August 30th-September 3rd, 2014 on Kindle.

Compared to the first book, lots of things happen in this novel. So also begins the
the restlessness of Charles Ingalls.

This novel had moving, travel, house building, Indians, malaria, and more. A lot of the stuff was on the scary side such as the creek crossing part, almost losing Jack the dog, and basically all the parts with wild animals.

It was a bit interesting to watch them travel and build a home on the prairies. Pa also seems to be a great hunter. I do like his endearment to Laura being “half-pint of sweet cider half drunk up.” I also liked the introduction of Mr. Edwards; I liked him when I was a kid too. I enjoyed the Santa Claus chapter and laughed out loud with that line: “In the Southwest, Santa Claus rides a pack mule”

The Scotts’ racism against Indians was a low point though. Pa wasn’t particularly prejudiced, but I’m wary about this whole land issue in the book.

I can’t judge this book without reading the others I feel. There are some nice moments that exemplified Laura’s (or Rose’s) writing ability.

Reread August 23, 2014 on Kindle.

This book in the series is known for its food, and there is lots and lots of food at the beginning stages. Almanzo’s childhood is relatively stable and abundant when compared to Laura’s. I think Laura wrote all the food to emphasize how much Manly had, but also how much she herself didn’t have growing up.

This is actually a really good standalone children’s book. There are a lot of period details about farm life from harvesting, weaving, animal husbandry, the fair, and much more. I only felt bad for the women and girls. Alice, Eliza, and Mother seemed to have been in the kitchen their whole lives. Alice even says “Boys have all the fun.”

The other discomfort would be the outdated stories about the Indian at the fair and playing “Indian”. The other annoying thing was Almanzo randomly getting $200 at the end for no reason really. None of the kids get “tanned” by their parent in this story. In fact, Father Wilder seems to be an incredibly savvy and benevolent man.

I’d reread this in the future. There was some sweet moments, but the ending was a bit abrupt.

Reread August 19-21, 2014 on Kindle.

This is part of a readalong of the Little House series I am organizing on an internet forum I moderate.

One of the reasons I organized the readalong was to see if they were as good as I remembered, but also to look critically for things. Rose Wilder wrote a lot of these books with her mother, and her political views are sprinkled throughout. Secondly, reading between the lines, a lot of other readers wondered if Pa Ingalls as that good of a family man after all.

The Little House in the Big Woods

This book was more boring than I remembered. Actually, maybe this book is so idyllic, it edges onto tedium.

I did enjoy some aspects, particularly the food parts: butchering, cheese-making, butter churning, maple sugaring, and more. I like the hunting moments, Christmas family moments, and Ma making hats. The ending is sweet too.

Some of the stuff I wasn’t loving was the punishments, spankings for birthdays, and the rivalry between Mary and Laura in general was a bit discomforting. I didn’t like how they wrote about how Laura was not noticed because of her brown hair and curls: “They were ugly and brown.” Poor Laura.

Why did they move? I don’t know how the woods were so crowded when Laura and Mary had never even seen two houses together let alone a town or a store.

All in all, this was a lackluster start. It had its moments. I may consider it for children’s reading.

Reread August 18, 2014 on Kindle.