by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian
This fall is the 75th anniversary of Little
Golden Books, those inexpensive, golden-spined classics of all of our
childhoods. On Tuesday, September 19,
the Litchfield Library will be hosting a presentation on the history of Little
Golden Books. At 6 p.m., collector Ellen
Radel will share her extensive knowledge of these special children’s books,
show us her collection and read one of her favorite Little Golden Books. She will have some books available for sale
at the end.
If this date doesn’t work for your schedule, you can catch
Ellen at the Dassel History Center on Sunday, September 10, at 3 p.m., or at
the Hutchinson Library at 6:30 p.m. on September 26, among other Pioneerland
libraries that are hosting programs.
Even as adults, we can enjoy children’s books. In the new book Wild Things: The Joy of Reading Children’s Literature as an Adult, author Bruce Handy examines classic
children’s books. Handy is a contributing
editor at Vanity Fair magazine and was nominated for an Emmy in the ‘90s for
writing for Saturday Night Live. He
researched the classic children’s books he read to his kids, such as Goodnight
Moon, Charlotte’s Web, and The Cat in the Hat. In this book he shares perspectives on how we
see these books differently as adults than we did when we were children
ourselves. Do you love the artwork of
Beatrix Potter or Maurice Sendak? Do you
agree with Handy that Ramona the Pest is as iconic an American character as Tom
Sawyer or Jay Gatsby? (I do.) Reviewers
say this book is a pleasure to read, with plenty of humor, and it’s an
interesting look at the history and significance of our favorite children’s
books.
Speaking of Goodnight Moon, we have a new biography of its
author. In the Great Green Room: The Brilliant and Bold Life of Margaret Wise Brown by Amy Gary shows that Brown was very
different than the quiet classic she’s famous for. She began writing children’s books for a
school, with a mission to create stories that were more than fairy tales and
that had gender equality in mind. Brown
prepared for her writing by doing things children would do: picking daisies,
watching the clouds, and otherwise observing nature so that she could capture a
child’s sense of wonder. Her approach to
writing changed the children’s publishing business. She also lived an adventurous, bohemian life:
as NPR put it, she was no old lady whispering hush.
The editor of the New York Times Book Review, Pamela Paul,
has a new book out called My Life with Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues. Paul has kept a
notebook all her life called her book of books, or “Bob” for short, which lists
all of the books she has read. The first
chapter is called “Brave New World: You Shouldn’t Be Reading That.” In it, Paul describes what it was like to be a
bookworm when she was growing up, and she talks about her adventures in the
library, checking out things she was proud of reading, like “Little Women,” and
things she was embarrassed about, like Sweet Valley High and Judy Blume
books. She eventually realized the
librarians weren’t judging her. Paul’s
memoir should appeal to people who love books and like to think about how the
books we read are a part of our lives.
It can be really fun to revisit classic children’s books,
whether you’re reading them to your children or grandchildren or just going
back to enjoy something on your own. Did
you love The Poky Little Puppy or The Monster at the End of This Book? Come to our program on the history of Little
Golden Books at one of the local libraries and enjoy the nostalgia.
