Fountains, and Lessons of Kindness

Learning kindness...Madeline and the Bad Hat by Ludwig Bemelmans.  One day the Spanish Ambassador and his family move in next to Miss Clavel and the 12 little girls in her care ("the smallest one was Madeline"). It is soon discovered that Pepito, the ambassador's son is a "bad hat." He continually causes mischief and gets into trouble, and Madeline wants nothing to do with him! Only when Miss Clavel and her charges come to the rescue of Pepito does he agree to change his ways - and Madeline decides to befriend him. (Pepito is also a main character in the stories Madeline in London and Madeline and the Gypsies.)  Warning: Pepito is cruel to animals.  Best for children who won't be overly troubled by his cruel tricks and who are old enough understand this cruelty becomes a lesson for Pepito as he eventually suffers from his own actions. As with all books, parents should preview.

A sheep, a fountain, and a kind family...The Sheep of The Lal Bagh by David Mark, with illustrations by Lionel Kalish.  Go here for my past post and review of this fun book.

An Oz Fountain...

The "Forbidden Fountain" was created by Baum in his sixth Oz book, The Emerald City of Oz, in which an enchanted fountain purges the memories of all who drink its Water of Oblivion. In that book, the fountain provides the resolution of the plot conflict, through which the invading hordes of a barbarian army are defeated without violence. The fountain appears in later Oz books by Baum and his followers; it is significant in Baum's The Magic of Oz, Rachel Cosgrove Payes's The Wicked Witch of Oz, Edward Einhorn's Paradox in Oz, and Eloise Jarvis and Lauren Lynn McGraw's The Forbidden Fountain.