One of my favorite towns, Solvang, was founded
by Danish immigrants in 1911. (If you love Scandinavia, I'm sure you can just imagine the decorations for their Julefest at Christmas time! And be sure and have some ebelskivers!!)
On Mission Drive you'll find The Book Loft...
...is a huge bust of the famous author himself.
Many first and early additions of his books, poetry, and correspondence (written in his spidery script) are on display, as well as photographs of him, and examples of the delicate paper cut art he so loved.
In order to amuse his friends and their children Hans Christian Andersen made paper cuts. He was in fact a very popular paper cutter - see images here.
There is no immediate connection between his paper cuts and fairy tales, but Andersen used to accompany his paper cutting with fantastic tales, and he would present his finished work of art to his amazed listeners by unfolding the paper cut-out as he ended his tale!
I've enjoyed several visits to this bookstore museum over the years, and highly recommend it, if you ever find yourself in the Santa Ynez Valley of California! My next post will be about some other places my hubby and I enjoyed while we were there...
by Eleanor Estes? Lois Slobodkin's beautiful watercolor illustrations echo the wistful tone of this classic story. Never out of print since its 1944 publication, this tender story offers readers of all ages a timeless message of compassion and understanding. At its heart is Wanda Petronski, an immigrant girl in an American school, who is ridiculed for wearing the same faded blue dress every day. When she tells her classmates that she has one hundred dresses at home, she unwittingly triggers a game of teasing that eventually ends in a lesson for all.
, starring Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire. I'll never forget the shot of 
, that is illustrated with beautiful mosaics he cut from paper...it's a beautiful read aloud for ages 6-9.
