Writing about a LITTLE BEAR

Else Minarik, a former newspaper reporter and first-grade teacher on Long Island, N.Y., wrote Little Bear as a reaction against the stale “Dick and Jane” books of the 1940s.

“I had originally written the books illustrated with my own drawings for my daughter, Brooke, who wanted to learn to read at an early age,” she said.

Later, she mimeographed copies for her students (also beginning readers), with her own illustrations.

Born in Denmark on Sept. 13, 1920, Minarik immigrated with her family to the United States when she was 4 years old. “Little Bear was me in Denmark. I was cuddled and loved,” she recalled.

Hans Christian Andersen (read to her by her mother) was an early influence — and so too, according to Minarik, were childhood trips to the zoo...

When Else Minarik took her Little Bear manuscript to Random House, an editor told her that perhaps if she changed the characters to children, the publisher would consider it. 

“I thought to myself, all children of all colors would be reading the stories. All children love animals. The bear is fine. I love them because Mother took me to the Bronx Zoo every day, and I fell in love with the cubs. My bears were a family.” 

The editors at what was then Harper & Row agreed with Minarik, and used Little Bear as the debut title in their long-running “I Can Read!” series for beginning readers.

Little Bear appeared in 1957 with illustrations by Maurice Sendak (who dressed the bears in Victorian finery.) This Little Bear is a charming cub with good intentions that are sometimes marred by his lack of experience and clumsiness. 

He resembles most preschool children: his world is innocent, close and secure, with Mother Bear at its center. Father Bear appears, but only from time to time, and is clearly of less importance.

In the simply written, yet thoughtful stories - which include real and imaginary situations - Minarik conveyed key characteristics of all young children's lives: the need for both safety and independence, imagination and play, and the importance of family and of making friends.

The Little Bear books belong to some of my earliest memories of childhood reading.  We lived in a Victorian farmhouse at the time, with a parlor and an attic - and my mom had a sewing machine like Little Bear's mother!  I remember wondering, like Little Bear, what it would be like to go try to go the moon.  And my dad travelled quite a bit when I was young, so I could identify with that part of Little Bear's story too.  

I think Maurice Sendak's rich Victorian illustrations were the perfect pairing with Minarik's simple prose. It's quite ironic that we lost them both last year:  Mr. Sendak on May 8, 2012, at the age of 83, and Else Holmelund Minarik at the age of 91, on July 12, 2012.

{All quotes taken from an article by Star-News Correspondent MJ Engle - source}

A Poet, An Artist, and a Stinky Cheese Man

September 8th marks the birthdays of three significant contributors to the world of children's books - Poet Jack Pretlutsky, Artist Michael Hague, and Writer Jon Sciezska.

These three men's books were favorites of my oldest son when he was between the ages of 8 and 12; and I think their books were very influential in my son's chosen vocation as a stop motion animator, contributing to his sense of rhythmic timing, art, and humor in his projects.  

Take a look at some of our family favorites...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Where's Spot? Right Here!

Happy Birthday to Eric Hill, author of the "Spot" books!

Eric Hill was born on September 7, 1927 in London, and educated at Pooles Park Elementary and Tollington Park Central schools until the outbreak of World War II. At 16 he joined an art studio as a messenger, where he was encouraged to draw cartoons in his spare time.

After a spell in the airforce, Eric returned to the studio to work on his cartoons, which soon began to be published in national magazines and newspapers. He started a weekly strip for the London magazine Illustrated and did small story sketches for Lilliput. After a year, he left the studio and joined the art department of an advertising agency as a visualizer.

In 1976 Eric’s son Christopher was born, and by the time Christopher was two his Dad was making up stories about the adventures of a small puppy to read to him at bedtime - and Spot was born!

Although initially created just as a story to please his son, Where’s Spot? was actually published as a children’s book in 1980 and started a new publishing concept of ‘interactive books for babies’.

My grandson loves my (youngest son's) old copy of Spot's First Words!

The innovative lift-the-flap concept, combined with the simple story and quirky, charming illustrations, helped Where’s Spot? become an instant hit with young children and within weeks it was at the top of the UK best-seller list.

Take time to visit the "Fun With Spot" website dedicated to this puppy and his books...there are even free downloads available for a Spot Party!

I also love this slide show from The Guardian, in which you can watch Eric Hill sketching and explaining about how he fell into writing children's book almost by accident!

[biography source here]

Like Father, Like Son: the Prolific Fleischmans

Are children influenced by their parents?  Yes!  And parents are influenced by their children!  I was pleasantly surprised to discover that prolific author Paul Fleischman, whose birthday is today, is the son of another prolific writer:  Sid Fleischman.  Sid said his children led him into his career writing children's books (more here).  And Paul says growing up hearing his father read aloud chapters of the books as they were being written was a huge part of his education.

Another thing I discovered is that this father and son are the only parent and child to win Newbery awards - Sid for a book our family thoroughly enjoyed, The Whipping Boy in 1987; Paul for Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices, in 1989.

Sid Fleischman (who died in 2010) has quite an interesting biography, which you can read here. The list of books this author has written is astounding!  Another favorite of ours is By The Great Horn Spoon, a comic work of historical fiction about the California Gold Rush.

"Humor is the oxygen of children's literature. There's a lot of competition for children's time, but even kids who hate to read want to read a funny book." 

- Sid Fleischman

Sid Fleischman - Newbery Award Author, Magician,
Screenwriter, Playwright, Lyricist, & etc. [source]

As a children's book author, Sid Fleischman felt a special obligation to his readers. "The books we enjoy as children stay with us forever -- they have a special impact. Paragraph after paragraph and page after page, the author must deliver his or her best work." With almost 60 titles to his credit, some of which have been turned into motion pictures, Sid Fleischman's books made a special impact.

Paul Fleischman is just as talented and dedicated as his father was, with an amazing list of works - including poetry, YA fiction, picture books, plays, and non-fiction.  I've read his YA fiction book, The Borning Room, and I have to say, he has certainly got a poetic rhythm in his words and writing.

Paul Fleischman [source]

"We grew up knowing that words felt good in the ears and on the tongue, that they were as much fun to play with as toys." 

-Paul Fleischman

One early project the Fleischman family shared was a small, old-fashioned, long-before-there-were-computers home hand printing press. Paul and his sisters made stationary, business cards, and "began learning a language no one else on our block spoke".

The family had a printing press because Sid Fleischman was working on a book about a traveling printer, and parts of the book were absorbed into the household.

Paul recounts: "I had an idyllic childhood ten blocks from the Pacific in Santa Monica, California. My two sisters and I had a big house to roam, one that included a telescope, shortwave radio, and a door that opened onto a wall. We also had a hand printing press and all learned to set type and to read backwards, since that's the way type is arranged in the composing stick..."  [source]

Sounds like Paul was inspired by a lot of JOYFUL NOISE in his family home growing up!

Looking Forward to Some September Literary Birthdays, including a 75-Year-Old Dragon!

Kenneth Grahame's classic, The Reluctant Dragon, turns 75 this year. "A book-loving boy befriends a complacent, poetry-writing dragon and – to please expectant villagers – masterminds his faux joust with an agreeable St. George in Kenneth Grahame’s The Reluctant Dragon, illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard. Holiday House, which first published the wry spin on the St. George legend in 1938, brings out a 75th anniversary edition on September 15." read more here...

There are quite a few children's book authors who were born in September:  Paul Fleischman's birthday is September 5; Eric Hill, was born September 7;  Jack Pretlutsky, Michael Hague, and Jon Sciezska share September 8; Roald Dahl and Else Holmelund Minarik were born on the 13th; Diane Goode on the 14th;  Robert McCloskey's and Tommie DePaola's birthdays are September 15;  H.A. Rey the 16th; and British illustrator Arthur Rackham on the 19th.

I'll be posting (or re-posting) tributes to all these authors throughout September.

Other birthdays this month include F. Scott Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896) and  T.S. Eliot (September 26, 1888).  Eliot didn't write about dragons, but he did pen a lovely book about CATS.

So many September literary birthdays - see more here!

Looking Back: Lessons Learned From Harry Potter

He'll be famous – a legend – I wouldn't be surprised if today was known as 
Harry Potter Day in the future – there will be books written about Harry – every 
child in our world will know his name! 
-Prof. McGonagall to Dumbledore 
from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Today marks fifteen years since Scholastic's 1998 U.S. release of J.K. Rowling's first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.  To date there are more than 150 million Harry Potter books in print in the United States alone, with the series regularly hitting the bestseller lists.

How many Harry Potter books have sold worldwide?  450 million!

Because of the subject matter of "witchcraft and wizardry," many Christian parents have concerns about the Harry Potter series.  Are you one of those parents who is unsure of these books about a boy wizard?

source

After the first four Harry Potter books were published, my Dad, Fr. Peter Gillquist (of blessed memory) - an Orthodox priest as well as a writer and editor of Christian books - was often approached by Christian parents who were conflicted about whether these books about magic made "good" reading for their children.

It became obvious that "the Harry Potter books" could not be ignored, so my father wrote an article for AGAIN Magazine in 2001 (Vol. 23, Issue 1, Ancient Faith Publishing), titled "Take a Lesson From Harry Potter".  He began the article by addressing many of the parents' questions, asking,

Why is Rowling touching such a nerve with her books?  What attracts her loyal young readers? More importantly, can we gain some insights from this Harry Potter phenomenon to help us better communicate Christ to those around us, and especially to a generation of young people who are growing up reading these mysteries?

My dad went on to site three areas in which kids relate Harry Potter:  they identify and connect with his family, moral, and supernatural "worlds".  I've attempted to quickly outline Dad's points below...

First of all, there is Harry Potter's family world.  Like Harry, many kids today are lonely and want one-on-one time with their parents.  They may not be orphaned or live in a "Cupboard Under the Stairs", but kids and teens today are aware that there are lots of things competing for their busy parents' attention.

Regarding Harry's moral world, Dad wrote, "Though a wizard, Harry is into doing what's right."  Kids really do want to do the right thing, and they can identify with the difficult choices Harry has to make.  But don't just take my dad's word for it; I read an excellent Wall Street Journal article (2011) that said this:

Harry is a Dickensian archetype, a child of cruelty who inspires in us an urge to make a better world. Alongside Oliver Twist, he is the most celebrated orphan in world literature. Oliver is altogether too perfect, untouched by the evil around him. Harry, more credibly, wrestles with forces of darkness and commands our sympathies.

Lastly, my dad took a look at Harry's supernatural world:  "What kid in America, even in an Orthodox [or Christian] home, doesn't at one time or another wish he could just fly off with his friends and do something else?...We need another kingdom [world].  That's why kids are picking up on Harry Potter."  Dad went on to talk about how we all yearn for another world, and for Christians that will be the Kingdom of God (heaven) someday.  Dad closed out the article with this admonishment:

Moms, make your home a place your children love to be.  Dads: be lovers, be guardians, be leaders. Experience the life of the mysteries of God together as a family...Morally set the mark high on the wall with your children.  If you love them, major strongly in both righteousness and mercy..."But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you" (Matthew 6:33).  Harry Potter should have had it so good!

I will acknowledge that the series gets darker as it goes on (7 books in all).  Our family was lucky - my kids were in junior high when the first book was published, so I didn't have to make a judgement call about the age they were when they started reading the books.   I had heard both positive and negative things about Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.  So I read it first.  I loved it, and could hardly wait for my kids to dive in. They grew up right along with Harry, Hermione, and Ron!

Looking for a fun critical study of Harry Potter?  I highly recommend  John Granger's books.  From HogwartsProfessor.com:  "John Granger’s contribution to the crowded world of Harry Potter thinking since 2002 has been his insistence that Harry’s adventures be read as any other very good book rather than dissected as a sui generis phenomenon. This perspective has allowed him to explain how the magic of the books is not a departure from the traditions of English fantasy and, mirabile dictu, is even edifying Christian reading."

To end my post today, I'd like to say that I learned a lot about having hope from my Dad and Harry Potter. My Dad would be the first to say that he could never have made it so far on his life journey (especially his struggle with cancer) had it not been for God's mercy and the prayers of family and friends. And in our church tradition, our friends include the saints of God...

This Christian tradition of patron saints goes back to the time of the early church. Our saints are chosen from among the holy men and women who have gone before us and are now in God's presence, part of that "great cloud of witnesses" described in Hebrews.  Who better to intercede on our behalf?

Does this tradition of patron saints remind any of you of something from the Harry Potter books?  The word patron, which means "defender" or protector", has its origin in the Latin word pater, or "father".

I have to believe J.K. Rowling was inspired by this etymology when she came up with the Patronus idea for the books!  If you recall, she has Harry use an expecto patronum ("awaiting a protector") charm to conjure up a magical shield of hopeful, happy feelings as protection from the Dementors and other dark forces.

Harry teaches his friends who make up "Dumbledore's Army" about the Patronus Charm. He tells them to use "a powerful memory, the happiest you can remember. Allow it to fill you up...just remember, your Patronus can only protect you as long as you stay focused...think of the happiest thing you can."

So I really do think there is a lot we can learn from Harry Potter - about having hope, and relying on the help of our loved ones who are here, as well as those who have gone on before us.

And we have J.K. Rowling to thank for bringing us this literary world of muggles and magic, with an imperfect hero who struggles for hope and chooses good, while looking forward to being reunited with those gone before.

You think the dead we loved ever truly leave us? You think we don’t recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble? 

-Albus Dumbledore to Harry Potter

from The Prisoner of Azkaban

This post is dedicated to the memory of my father.  Love you, Dad!

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!