Lazy Tuesday

Pizza and a movie.  Happy day.

And a little bonus for you.

Another Post About Kittens

We had a thunderstorm late last night.  The skies opened up and the rain came down in buckets.  So I ran out into the storm to check on our latest batch of kittens:  Mabel's sister, Lucy, has three little ones, just opening their eyes.  She had them in the bushes in front of our house.  Last night, I went out to the porch.  Thunder was crashing, lightning flashing, and Miss Lucy was cowering under the table.  I grabbed Mr. B's spare railroad lantern and Little Sis's umbrella, and ran to the bushes.  I scooped up three shivering, soaked babies and brought them to the porch.  Then I grabbed an old laundry basket, some towels, and Mama Cat and made the brood a nice bed for overnight.  I snapped this picture this morning.  I think Lucy had already moved one of the tabbies back to the bushes.  An hour later, the other tabby was back in the bushes, too.  I moved the other kitten for her.  

So in celebration of all things kitten - because I cannot escape the kitties - I put together another round-up of kitty cat books, this time focusing on the babies.  Here we have some fiction and some non-fiction.  Some of them are vintage, some are out-of-print, but still pretty easy to find.  And all are appropriate for smaller kiddos, too.  

Top Row:  Three Little Kittens (Little Golden Book #1!), illustrated by Masha.   Simon & Schuster, 1942.  That's Not My Kitten by Fiona Watt, illustrated by Rachel Wells.  Usborne, 2006.  Kitten: See How They Grow by DK Publishing, illustrated by Nigel Hazle with photography by Jane Burton.  DK Publishing, 2007.  Center Row:  Touch & Feel: Kitten by DK Publishing, 1999.  (Newer edition is here.)  The Tale of Tom Kitten by Beatrix Potter.  Frederick Warne & Co., 1907.  (This edition is from 2002.)  Bottom Row:  I Am A Kitten by Ole Risom, illustrated by Jan Pfloog.  Western Publishing, 1974.  The Kitten Who Thought He Was A Mouse (Little Golden Book) by Miriam Norton, illustrated by Garth Williams.  Random House, 2008. (Originally published as a Little Silver Book by Golden Press, 1954.)  Kittens Are Like That by Jan Pfloog.  Random House, 1976.

(The best/worst part of making a photo collage like this is realizing what I left off the list.  As many kitty-cats as we have around here, though, I'm sure I'll be inspired to do one more.  Someday...)

For more kitty book goodness, see today's post on Julia's Bookbag, about the Orlando books by Kathleen Hale.  I have longed to see some of these books in person for a few years now.  I need to get a hold of some myself.

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Daddy's Day is Two Days Away!

Instead of doing my usual Friday "what we've been reading/doing" round-up, I thought I'd let Big Sis take over.  She interviewed her daddy, Mr. B, for this very special Father's Day weekend post!  

Big Sis:  What's your favorite book to read with us?

• Mr. B:  The thing is, I don't have a favorite book.  I like it when we read our science and history books.  I still like it when we read David or Elephant & Piggie - it reminds me of when you guys were little.  I mostly like it when we read something and it sparks a question, and we have to look it up.  When it sparks a conversation.

Big Sis: What's your favorite movie or show to watch with us?

• Mr. B:  Oh, Phineas & Ferb and The Mighty B!!  They make me laugh, and speak to my inner 8-year-old.

Big Sis:  What's you favorite activity to do with us?

• Mr. B:  I like it when you help me build something.  I like that both of you have paid attention and know what tools I'm asking for, and that when I hand you a tool, you use it properly.  I like it that you guys don't grab-a?? when we work.  

Big Sis:  What's your favorite part of being a dad?

• Mr. B:  Just the opportunity to meet and be a part of two wonderful young ladies' lives.

Big Sis:  If we could give you anything for Father's Day, what would it be?

• Mr. B:  Anything that you guys make or give me with love is perfect!  Or a bass boat.

The Wild Swans (Marcia Brown)

The Wild Swans by Hans Christian Andersen, illustrated by Marcia Brown.
Charles Scribner's Sons, 1963.

It's true.  Of all the weird and wonderful fairy tales, for some reason, my favorite has always been "The Wild Swans."  I don't remember where I first read it.  I know I was in elementary school.  I had an old book of Andersen fairy tales (and a matching one for the Brothers Grimm), but I seem to think I first read it in my school library.  I do know the Andersen version is the one I knew first.  In the Andersen tale, the princess is named Elisa.  She has eleven brothers.  The story is one Andersen has adapted into his own.  Whenever I read a collection of the Grimms, I always look for their variant, "The Six Swans."  The stories are very similar, but while the Grimms were folk tale collectors, Andersen was a real writer.  His version is so strange and beautiful, and it remains my favorite.

You can find texts of both versions online.  The main plot is this:  a wicked stepmother transforms the princes into swans.  The princess discovers them years later, as they land near a lake.  At night, they become men again.  She dreams that in order to transform them into men permanently, she must gather some nettles and sew the nettles into shirts.  She is not allowed to utter a sound.  As she sets about her difficult task, a king sees her and falls in love with her, despite her silence.  He proposes to her, and preparations are made for their wedding.  However, unkind people believe the silent girl who is sewing shirts from nettles is a witch.  After "proving" it to the king, the girl is sentenced to be burned.  All the while, she sews shirts like mad.  Just as the fire is to be lit, the swans descend and she throws the shirts on them.  The swans become human again, although one prince is left with a wing for an arm, because the princess was unable to gather more nettles.  Finally, the princess can explain herself.  The king is overjoyed and they are married.  (And yes, you really should hunt down a decent translation, because I am a reader, not a writer.)

So in playing around on the internet, I found a listing for a book of the tale illustrated by Marcia Brown.  Brown won a Caldecott Medal for her 1954 Cinderella, which is beautiful.   (She also won for two other books, the only illustrator to win three Caldecott Medals besides David Wiesner.)  I checked the library, only to find that The Wild Swans was unavailable.  (I checked out her well-loved version of Stone Soup instead.)  I was lucky to find an old library copy on the Better World Books website instead, just in time to grab it in one of their bargain bin sales.  Enjoy a few pictures!

I always wondered about the last brother.  Was he happy enough to just be a man again?  Was he jealous of his brothers for having two arms?

One final note:  It's sad to see such a lovely book stamped with the word "Discarded" repeatedly.

Edit:  I have added a few videos!  I do love this story.

And just for fun...

There are also lots of clips and parts of different animated versions on YouTube that I'm not including here.  Enjoy!


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Library Day

But I have to admit, I'm most excited about a certain non-book item we checked out.  Crossing fingers that the daughters love this  as much as I did when I was a kid!

(I was fascinated by Medusa.)

(R.I.P. Ray Harryhausen)

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The Little Golden Book of Poetry (Corinne Malvern, 1947)

The Little Golden Book of Poetry, illustrated by Corinne Malvern.
Simon & Schuster, 1947.

My latest addition to our Little Golden Book rack:  The Little Golden Book of Poetry, illustrated by Corinne Malvern.  First published in 1947, mine is an E, or fifth, edition.

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Friday Catch-Up

A Little Book of Sloth by Lucy Cooke.
Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2013.

 So my library stack is huge, but my play opens tonight, which means the week has been very busy.  I must share my favorite book from my current stack, though.  I know there are some sloth fans out there!  This book is absolutely wonderful.  I so need to own it.  I mean, look!

I'm currently reading the Dare Wright biography I got the other day, as well as Mary Poppins.  I'm taking a break at home, though, to finish up the All-of-a-Kind Family books.  I'm almost done with Uptown.  Then there will only be one left!

We're still reading The Marvelous Land of Oz at bedtime.  I'm so excited to re-read these books.  Last night, Tip brought the Sawhorse to life with the Powder of Life.

This week has seen play rehearsals, a Girl Scout pool-side shindig and the awarding of Cookie prizes, some beautiful flowers from Mr. B, a new ice cream parlor, lunch at the bookstore, donuts, chalk drawings, a visit from the Tooth Fairy, and a backyard "concert" by Little Sis.

I thought I'd share a few neat linky odds and ends, too.  Look at this cute Willy Wonka birthday party at Kara's Party Ideas!  (I still love this one at Imagination Tree, too.)  Anyone else out there have a thing for Charley Harper's illustrations?  This awesome "Charley Harper for the Nursery" round-up appeared on Apartment Therapy today.  I know I keep saying I'm going to do a post all about macaroni and cheese, but I always forget to take pictures when I cook.  I get too focused.  That said, I just made this one again today.  It's become my go-to mac and cheese.  Finally, thanks to my bizarre collection of things no one wants anymore (namely the empty container an Edison cylinder once came in), the girls and I got into a discussion about early phonographs.  We found this video of a 1910 cylinder recording being played on a 1905 Edison phonograph.  What's cool is to contrast this one with this 1914 78 RPM disc recording, played on a Victor Talking Machine.  As Little Sis said, "That sounds a lot better."

Yeah, my kids are going to know a lot about archaic technology, I'm afraid...

Merry Weekend!  Happy Reading!


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