The llama who had no pajama (but did have a book)

Can we read? No. 109

Hi y’all.

Last week the inimitable

Claire Zulkey

, mastermind behind what might be the greatest Substack of all time,

Evil Witches Newsletter

, wrote about what to do when you have a kid who has to read over the summer.

She asked me my thoughts on this topic, and even though I can get super salty about required reading for kids, I eked out a semi-sane answer and then Claire made me sound even better, because she’s good like that. If you’re interested in reading the post, here you go:

Summer reading for kids, but make it cute

🤖 Also, yesterday I sent out my newest mini issue — children’s books about robots — if that’s a thing you need in your life right now.

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Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox, illustrated by Julia Vivas (1984)

In this gentle story, a small boy named Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge lives next door to “an old people’s home,” and though he’s friends with all of the residents, his favorite person is Miss Nancy Alison Delacourt Cooper, “because she had four names just as he did.”

One day he overhears his parents talking about how Miss Nancy is losing her memory, and he sets out to discover what a memory is, exactly. He speaks with all of his older friends — each of whom tells him something different — before setting out to collect memories of his own. These he brings to Miss Nancy, who, as a result of these touching gifts, remembers.

It’s not often old age is depicted with as much care and grace as it is here, and especially the topic of forgetting (though the word Alzheimer’s is never used, this would be an excellent title to read with young children facing that challenge with someone in their life). Coupled with Vivas’ warm, vibrant watercolors — which always contain so much life and movement and joy — this tender story is a wonderful read that asks us to consider what is a memory? and, perhaps more importantly, how well can we care for the people we love?

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Someone Is Eating The Sun by Ruth A. Sonneborn, illustrated by Eric Gurney (1974)

This review first appeared in issue No. 27. I’ve edited and updated it here.

“One day Hen was pecking around picking up corn when it began to grow darker. ‘That’s strange,’ said Hen. ‘There’s not a cloud in the sky. Why is it getting darker?’ When she looked up she saw something stranger still. A bite-sized piece of the sun was missing.”

Thus begins the wild barnyard story of an eclipse, an unknown and unknowable event to the animals that live there, who believe that someone is taking a bite of — and then fully eating — the sun. Hen warns Rooster, together they warn Duck, together they warn Pig and Goat in turn, their panic increasing along with the energy and suspense of this cumulative tale until finally, finally Turtle in his wisdom says, “Why don’t you keep quiet and watch the eclipse?”

Besides being an engaging story in and of itself — Gurney’s bright and lively illustrations make this doubly so — it’s a surprisingly accurate and accessible explanation of what happens during an eclipse, what an eclipse is. Not bad for a book that’s nearly 50 years old.

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The Umbrella Queen by Shirin Yim Bridges, illustrated by Taeeun Yoo (2008)

High in the hills of Thailand, there is a village where everyone makes umbrellas, day in and day out, all year long, as their ancestors have done for hundreds of years. Each New Year’s Day, the woman who has painted the most beautiful umbrella is chosen as the Umbrella Queen.

There are rules to this practice — the umbrellas must be normal-sized and depict flowers or butterflies. But when Noot, learning this lovely skill, gets in trouble with her mother for trying out another design, she has to take her ideas inside, literally and figuratively. In secret, she creates teeny-tiny umbrellas, which she covers with pictures of elephants.

Of course, Noot’s inventiveness and unwillingness to give up catch the attention of the King, who sees her creations for the beautiful innovation they are. I won’t spoil the ending — what happens to and for Noot when someone finally sees and appreciates her art — only offer that this sweet tale, made especially unique and lovely by Yoo’s calm linoleum print-with-pencil images, contains some excellent messages about trusting your own ideas and being willing to go your own way, no matter how unconventional.

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Paddington by Michael Bond, illustrated by R.W. Alley (1998)

I don’t normally recommend picture book versions of what are originally chapter books. There are exceptions to this, of course — some of these are far more well-done than one might expect — but nevertheless, when I picked up the Paddington picture books several years ago to introduce to my littles, I was skeptical.

I needn’t have been: there are very few things R.W. Alley touches with his deeply adorable watercolors that don’t turn to gold in his super-talented hands (not to mention, pretty immediately win me over).

I grew up on the Paddington stories — see my battered copy below, which my mother read to me, and then I read again and again on my own — so I love him dearly, but this review is especially for those of you for whom he is a new character (or, perhaps, for those of who you have only seen him in the truly excellent film adaptation on Netflix).

This title is his first story — how he came to be adopted by the Brown family and live in their house at 32 Windsor Gardens in London — and it’s the perfect taste of all the stories to come. If you’re getting to know Paddington — or want to introduce him to your preschoolers and early elementary-aged kiddos — I highly recommend this one.

My well-loved childhood copy of Paddington, which I still have, of course

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The Llama Who Had No Pajama: 100 Favorite Poems by Mary Ann Hoberman, illustrated by Betty Fraser (1998)

Someday I will make a list of authors and illustrators whose books you should snatch up the instant you see them in the world (first of all, would that even be helpful?) and you can rest assured that Mary Ann Hoberman will be on it: without fail, her poetry is enjoyable, relatable, frequently hilarious, and reliably crowd-pleasing to a wide variety of ages (adults included).

This anthology, which includes not only 100 of her outstanding poems but also Fraser’s charming gouache and watercolor illustrations, is one of those books to add to your home (or classroom) library without compunction: it’s delightful, it will serve you again and again, and it never gets old. Pull it off the shelf any time you need a surefire poetry win — it won’t disappoint.

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Thanks for reading today!

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Sarah