Tea for Two (and a Tea Rex!)

(Used with permission by Wild Ginger Photography)

Books and tea somehow belong together, don’t you think? Author C.S. Lewis (born in Ireland and schooled at Oxford), undoubtedly grew up with tea time as a daily ritual. He spoke for many of us when he said, “You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”

My daughter and I love discovering local (California) tearooms together.  Two of our favorites are The Four Seasons Tea Room in Sierra Madre and The Tea House on Los Rios in San Juan Capistrano.

As a child, I certainly wished Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia would never end. I also vividly recall wanting to join Lucy Pevensie and Mr. Tumnus for a sip or two of tea, when the kind Fawn invited her for tea and toast in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.

But I never imagined myself having tea with a dinosaur...

Have you seen this adorable new picture book about teatime with a Mr. Tea Rex? It's written and illustrated by the talented Molly Idle.

Some tea parties are for grown-ups.

Some are for girls.

But this tea party is for a very special guest.

And it is important to follow some rules . . .

like providing comfortable chairs,

and good conversation,

and yummy food.

But sometimes that is not enough for special guests,

especially when their manners are more Cretaceous than gracious . . .

One thing I really like about this book is that it would appeal to both boys and girls, who - while being distracted by the hilarious artwork - might not realize that they are actually learning a little bit about the etiquette and manners of teatime.

In the midst of a table set with dainty tea cups, the dinosaur creates quite a bit of havoc!

The book trailer is so much fun...a great read aloud for ages 4 and up!