Two More Picture Books for the Young and Not-So-Young

I am gradually emerging from the end-of-semester stupor. Soon I will respond to blog comments left over the past few days: I've had to be so responsive to the zillions of pieces of work recently received that it's hard to respond to anything I don't absolutely HAVE TO.

My daughter, Miss Em, loved my blog post yesterday about Napping House.

She confided that she didn't love the book quite as much as I did; maybe I read it too much?

Anyway, in my quest to revive the fortunes of the picture book, I will recommend two other favorites. Both are WORDLESS books. The illustrations can provoke endless discussion, with readers of different ages getting different things from the books.

First is one we have packed away in the attic, awaiting a new generation.

Second is one we checked out of the library time and again.

Frugal Son, for whom this was a particular favorite, was stunned to hear we never owned a copy of this one. Perhaps I should buy one for him.

Do you have a soft spot for wordless books?

The Napping House: Our House

When Mom and Dad are teachers and children are college students, the entire household runs along the rhythms of the academic calendar. As of last night, we are ALL DONE.

And now we enter The Napping House.

This remains one of my all time favorite picture books. We still have ours, packed away for some future recipient. There was an article in the New York Times recently, chronicling a change in the publishing industry: so many parents are pushing their children away from picture books and towards chapter books and other more "mature" early readers that the industry is publishing fewer and fewer picture books each year.

Don't do it, Dear Readers! Picture books are wonderful and, in the best, there's a lot going on in the illustrations. I'm sure they develop some part of the brain that chapter books do not. Our children read both, and I'm sure they are the better for it. I know I'm the better for having read all those picture books with them.

Isn't it great that on a coldish day, we can talk about "our cozy bed" in the "napping house where everyone is sleeping." So today, we're drinking tea, taking occasional naps between our feather beds and the big down comforters. We're all wearing thrifted cashmere sweaters and fuzzy slippers.

Eventually--on account of the wakeful flea--everyone in the napping house wakes up and goes outside. We don't have the flea, but I suppose we will all get back to work soon enough.

If you have a child to buy a gift for, think about The Napping House. Or buy it for yourself, just in case a child comes over. Or just in case you feel in need of a little beauty in word and picture.

Chinaberry Books: Frugality and Community

A while back, I wrote about creating a budget category for COMMUNITY. This is where I would earmark money to support businesses I value. The COMMUNITY category would accommodate visits to restaurants owned by friends and colleagues. That is why, when the students in my night class said, "Can we get pizza next time?", I suggested that we instead patronize the cafe owned by one of our instructors. So we did.

Have you heard of Chinaberry Books? This is a wonderful book service/catalog with wonderful recommendations for children of all ages. These people really know what they're talking about.

The company sent me a catalog (unrequested by me) 21 years ago, after the birth of the little guy who grew up into Frugal Son. They must have gotten my name from Biobottoms, a now-defunct company, from which I bought cloth diapers.

It was hard to find my community back then: cloth diapering supplies, cotton baby clothes, good quality toys; these were available mostly through very pricey catalogues, which I dreamed over, but seldom bought anything from.

I only bought a few books from Chinaberry. I was--and still am--a thrift-shopper and library-user. But I pored over the catalogs nonetheless.

Evidently, I had a lot of company. The catalogs started carrying notices that people who looked, but bought from discount stores--or now from on-line book sellers--were helping contribute to the decline--and perhaps eventual demise--of this wonderful company.

I don't get the catalog any more. I hope one day to have grandchildren for whom to buy books. I look at the website now and again, to relive the happy days of parenting little ones. Today I was struck by a post from the founder:




The collection of items on our website is the result of literally thousands of hours of work by our staff. We are a small company, so those thousands of hours should say something about our commitment to offer you an intelligent and thoughtfully-selected collection of items. From games that we actually play (you wouldn’t believe how many games have unclear instructions) and toys that we kid-test (and you wouldn’t believe how many problems we find in that process) to items for the family and home that we have used and loved and books that we read cover to cover (and reject thousands), the Chinaberry catalog is a one-of-a-kind catalog.

So, what you find here is the cream of the crop. And while I can’t pass up a good game, love watching a child have fun with a cool toy, and appreciate something that will make my life better at home, there is simply nothing like a book. Books can make us wonder, astound us with what has occurred in the past, make us more compassionate, make us more able to stand up for what we believe in, make us want to get outside our comfort zones and maybe do something, and make us better people. The fact is that a game, a toy, or something for the kitchen just isn’t going to change us or change the world, but a book can light the flame that will do just that.

And this is why it is very significant and disheartening to us that we have had to decrease the number of books we are offering you in the catalog. We devote more time than you will ever know to reading books and then choosing the ones that are great read-alouds; will make you and your child laugh together, think, or talk; will ask your early teen to think about more than the typical teen in our country is thinking about; or that you, as an adult, might find to be a worthy escape when you have a moment to yourself. Unfortunately, so many of those who receive our catalog go to the giant online book source (we all know who it is) to buy the books that they’ve read about in Chinaberry, that our company can no longer continue to devote the same resources to finding great books. If the Chinaberry catalog is of value to you, we ask you to spend your dollars with us if you find a book here that you want. We know it is tempting to get a bargain, but independent booksellers like us survive only because of customers who value our service and take the extra step to support it. We ask that you take this into consideration when choosing where to buy your books. And to those of you who have loyally supported us throughout the years, we offer our heartfelt thanks — your orders are what have kept us in business and for that we are truly grateful!



So often for me frugality has seemed to conflict with community. But I am making an effort to build community into my conscious spending.

Any more thoughts on community and frugality?

Children's Books: A Sentimental Journey

Sometimes I think that I loved children's books more than my children did. My two are now away at college and aged 19 and 21. I guess it's time to put the children's books away. Interestingly, if my children don't wait till they are in their mid 30s to have children of their own, I might get to take the books out within the next 10 years.

Like Mr. FS who received a bad evaluation for his job reshelving books at the Lilly Library (he was seen reading more than a time or two), my progress of boxing is slowed by some lengthy glances. We have given away many books over the years. Nobody, however, ever really appreciates these (to me) precious gifts.

My sister-in-law asked us for some books in the hopes that her kids would like to read. We sent a huge box and heard nary a word back. Eventually, I asked if they had received the box of books. "What box?" they said. A few days later, my sister-in-law said, "Oh, thank you for the box of books. We loved them." I got the feeling that none had been read.

So many books are about frugality and order. I've already packed A Chair for My Mother. The mother works sooooo hard. The family saves coins in a jar and, at the end, they get the mother a comfy chair.

Then there's Something from Nothing. This is one of those Grandpa makes the little boy a jacket, then a vest, eventually a button, and at the end, a wonderful story! What a wonderful message. And the pictures show the growing family upstairs, while, below the stairs, the mouse family is garbed in bits of the same fabric. The family upstairs is Eastern European Jewish and so is the mouse family: the little mice even go to Hebrew School.

Right now, I'm looking at Sailor Dog by Margaret Wise Brown, who is best known for Good-Night Moon.

Scuppers went to sea. And he went down below to his little room, and he hung his new hat on the hook for his hat, and he hung his spyglass on the hook for his spyglass, and he hung his new coat on the hook for his coat, and his new handkerchief on the hook for his handkerchief, and his pants on the hook for his pants, and his new rope on the hook for his rope, and his new shoes he put under his bunk, and himself he put on his bunk.

And here he is where he wants to be--a sailor sailing the deep green sea.

How's that for simplicity and order? Not a single book is about going to the mall, opening scads of presents on birthdays and holidays, whipping out the credit card, or getting your first cell phone.

I can't resist another favorite: Roxaboxen. This is a true story about a bunch of kids perhaps 80 years ago in Funny's state of Arizona, making a whole world (with rules, even a jail) in the desert.

I am getting a distinct sense of deja vu. I think that I wrote an almost identical post in the early days of my blog. Well, probably no one read it then. Plus, it's recycling.

Using my Talents Part 2: Books for a Literacy Project

Yesterday, I wrote about using my somewhat embarrassing talent for frugality to start stocking up for Lucy M's dorm cooking next year. It just occurred to me that I have another, less embarrassing example.

Lucy M. is part of a student group that will be working in Marion, Alabama, an area with a high illiteracy rate. Lucy and her pals will be spending 3 weeks there this summer. They decided to partner with the local public library and develop a literacy project.

One idea involves a book give-away for kids who participate. The budget so far is $50.00. Gee, that will buy you about 10 books. Lucy volunteered me for the mission. She knows that nothing is more important to me than reading and she knows that I like nothing better than to scrounge for books in thrift stores.

So voila: within a few weeks of rather lackadaisical effort, I've amassed almost 100 books and I still have money in the budget. I've limited myself to books that look almost new. We're thinking of writing a short message in each book, along the lines of "I love this book and I hope you do too."

Can you think of any other good deeds one can do with the talent for frugality?

Free to a Loving Home: Books

The bane of the declutterer is the desire to find a loving home for all the discards. I myself suffer from this problem. Even though Flylady and her ilk urge us to LET GO, it's hard.

For me, it's especially hard with books. Most of the bookbuyers at the thrifts I habituate don't even look at the titles: they just scan with their phones, and wait for a "YES." But I have luckily found a few places where my books will find loving buyers.

First, I donate to the English Club at my place of employ. The money raised is used for travel to conferences.

When I went to the library today, I saw a sign that the Teen Club is collecting books for soldiers. What could be better than that?

Finally, Lucy Marmalade and the scholars in the "Fellows" program will be doing a three-week service project in rural Alabama, an area with over 50% adult illiteracy. The hardest books for me to unload are children's books. We are hoping that the library will take donations of books to be given away to children who participate in the program.

Last week I was playing with the tiny baby belonging to one of my students. The student was telling me that she loved to hold the baby while she fell asleep, even though all the books said it was wrong. ERGHHHH. I brought my very own copy of Penelope Leach's masterpiece to the next class. Finally, I found a good home for my beloved baby book.

I just packed up many books for the soldiers.

Free to a loving home.

What do you have problems with in the declutter department?

Books at Thrift Stores: Episode 1

I have been buying books at thrift stores for many years now. I came to the game late. When I was in graduate school, I went to the Salvation Army. Their store was in a damp basement. There I saw Danna, the owner of a recently-opened used book store. She must have had 50 books on the counter (they were 2 for a nickel). When she saw me, she said, “Oh, I hardly ever come here. This is the first time I’ve found any books. Usually, they don’t have any good books.”

Needless to say, I became a regular. As far as I could tell, we were the only people who bought books there. I bought some for me and the rest to trade for credit at the other used bookstore. I’m sure Danna was relieved when I moved.

It’s harder to find good books now because many people sell them on-line. If you ever go to a book sale and see people waving a cell phone over a book, you can be sure they are subscribing to “Scoutpal.” The isbn number links to Amazon and tells the person what the book is going for. Last time I went to a Friends of the Library Sale, I was the only person of 11 customers who did not have one of these.

I wish the people who run the sales would get one of these. The resellers only buy those books that can be sold. The library retains all the books that the resellers might have taken a chance on in the years before Scoutpal.

In fact, you don’t even have to know how to read to benefit from one of these. You can just scan or key in the numbers. I see teenagers in Goodwill methodically using Scoutpal on every book, including the tomes of John Grisham. I always want to tell them that they would save a lot of time if they would just eliminate the Grishams, which make up the bulk of books in any thrift store. My guess is that a parent is sending off a teenager to help with the family income.

So while it’s hard to find good academic books (my favorites!), or cookbooks, there is an overabundance of good fiction and children’s books. These have very little resale value, so it is easy to get that Oprah book you missed, any best seller of recent vintage, or wonderful Scholastic books for kids of all ages.

Just a few I’ve gotten recently:

“The Paradox of Choice”: I read a library copy a while ago. The premise is that too much choice does not increase happiness. My son read my library copy. He is going to give this book, which looks unread, as a gift to a friend who has too many choices.

“Girl, Interrupted”: I had this book years ago and probably traded it in at a used bookstore. My daughter saw the film of this book when we were in Florida. I told her I would get her a copy of the book. Second day back, there it was!

“Beasts of No Nation”: My son will be taking a course on African fiction. This is on the reading list. A very lucky find.

Total cost: 60 cents.

Dear readers: What books have you found at thrifts? What do you do with them when you are done? Anything you're looking for?

Children's Books and Frugality

As I surveyed the list of children’s books I posted yesterday, I was overwhelmed by emotion and wonderful memories of reading with my children. Then I was struck by how many of these books have to do with the very values we deem important: family, simple pleasures, and so forth. A sub-theme in many is frugality.

None of these books depicts a family in which each member is alone in his or her room watching tv. None of these books depicts a holiday scene in which children are overwhelmed by boxes and boxes of gifts.

Let me speak a little more specifically about some of these.

Oxcart Man: The family works together on a farm. The father journeys to the market, where he sells his ox and buys necessities and a few small gifts for his family. Beautifully written by a well-known poet.

Miss Rumphius: She travels the world and teaches. Then she has to decide how to make the world more beautiful. She chooses to scatter lupine seeds.

Roxaboxen: This tells how a group of children in Arizona made a whole world out of nothing.

Blueberries for Sal: Picking blueberries with mom. (Sal’s encounter with the bear will give a heart attack to many parents.)

Stone Soup. I remember this one from my own childhood. How with cleverness and creativity, soldiers get selfish villagers to make soup out of “nothing.”


One book is about gifts. Happy Birthday Moon is not about splurging on some extravagant item, but about how giving is a gift for the giver.

Two books are about “greed.” Strega Nona deals with a magic pasta pot; Anthony makes too much pasta and ends up with a tummy ache.
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs presents every child’s fantasy: food falling out of the sky!

Two books that I would add to the list:
Something from Nothing: about how nothing is wasted as a boy’s jacket becomes a vest and eventually a button. At the end you have a story!
A Chair for My Mother: Mom works hard and is soooo tired, so the family starts a coin jar to buy mom a chair.

More to come! It says something about how often we read these books that I am speaking about them from memory—more than 10 yeaers later.