Because everyone loves a good story
Awesome Children’s Books: A Brief Hiatus from the Hero’s Journey
Hello, dear friends! Today I want to talk about children’s books. But I’ll bet you’re wondering why on earth I would deprive you of the next installment of the Hero’s Journey. After all, you’ve probably been waiting for it all week with bated breath.
(As a side note, what’s with that phrase, anyway? “With bated breath”? What a weird thing to say. It’s so weird, in fact, that I just looked it up. According to my prestigious source, dictionary.com, “This expression literally means ‘holding one’s breath’ (bate means ‘restrain’).”
Oh. Well, that was prosaic. But now that I’m in the know, I plan to use the phrase at all the dinner parties I attend just so I can be smug about it.
“I say, Neville, what a simply smashing array of hors d’oeuvres. Ever since I received the invitation to your party, I’ve been waiting for it with bated breath.” Then I’ll have the opportunity to regale Neville with this information while loading up my tiny plate with cucumber and cream cheese sandwich wedges.
Children’s Books: Not Just for Kids
Now, as I was saying, while I’m sure you’ve all been holding your breath in anticipation for the next Hero’s Journey post, you’ll have to hold it a bit longer, I’m afraid. This week I want to talk about some of my favorite children’s books. But lest you begin to feel scornful about books that are written for children, let me clarify. I’m of the opinion that a well-written children’s book will be enjoyed by humans of all ages. C.S. Lewis agrees, saying, “I am almost inclined to set it up as a canon that a children’s story which is enjoyed only by children is a bad children’s story.”1
See? There you have it. And in this category of excellent children’s literature I’d like to nominate the Frog and Toad books by Arnold Lobel. These stories are short, simple, and magical, and I’ve never outgrown their charm. I’ve always been enchanted with the earth-toned pictures of these two friends in their woodsy, mushroomy world. I love the dynamic between grumpy, selfish, impulsive Toad and mature, patient, rational Frog. And there are situations and lines in these stories that I reference to this day.
Frog and Toad Make Me Hungry
For example, do you remember the hot summer day when Frog and Toad decide that what sounds best in the world is some “sweet, cold ice cream”? That description, along with the most excellent picture of Toad carrying these massive, cotton-candy shaped cones of chocolate ice cream, gets me every time. I want to run to the nearest ice cream shop and order a triple serving of my own sweet, cold ice cream. But I’d eat it there in the shop so that, unlike Toad, the ice cream wouldn’t melt all over my head and turn me into a sticky, drippy monster.2
Or what about the time that Toad bakes chocolate chip cookies and brings them all to Frog’s house? They said those were the best cookies they’d ever eaten, and I believe them. In fact,
“Frog and Toad ate many cookies one after another.
“‘You know, Toad,’ said Frog, with his mouth full, ‘I think we should stop eating. We will soon be sick.’
“‘You are right,’ said Toad. ‘Let us eat one last cookie, and then we will stop.’ Frog and Toad ate one last cookie. There were many cookies left in the bowl. ‘Frog,’ said Toad, ‘let us eat one very last cookie, and then we will stop.’ Frog and Toad ate one very last cookie.”3
As you can imagine, it was not their very last cookie. This story really resonates with me. But also, I absolutely adore the way Lobel draws these cookies. They are like tiny, chocolate chip wafers, just little discs of deliciousness. No wonder they couldn’t stop eating them! I would love to post a picture of it here, but it’s not public domain yet. Instead, why don’t you run to your nearest book store, buy a coffee, and settle in with some Frog and Toad books? Trust me, you will be delighted and enchanted. And you will most definitely be craving sweet, cold ice cream and chocolate chip cookies.
So what about you? What are some of your favorite children’s books? I’m always looking to discover some new classics. I’ll be waiting for your feedback with bated breath!
1From Lewis’s Essay, “On Three Ways of Writing for Children”
2From Arnold Lobel’s “Frog and Toad All Year”
3From Arnold Lobel’s “Frog and Toad Together”
9 Comments on “Awesome Children’s Books: A Brief Hiatus from the Hero’s Journey”
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For me and my family it was Calvin and Hobbes or the Sunday comics (which my dad horded for himself). Calvin and Hobbes is nostalgic for me because of the awesome adventures they have, and the timeless writing. The story writing was timeless because what you didn’t understand as a kid while reading it you could read as an adult and go, “wow, that was really political,” or “that’s totally society today.” But even as a kid Calvin and Hobbes captured exactly what kid life was like with his crazy imagination, hate of vegetables, imaginary friend, and procrastination of homework (maybe that was just me). Like Emily and Lewis said, a good story for children should be a good story for all ages and I’m sure that’s the very difficult part of writing but the most rewarding.
Yes! I am a complete Calvin fan. Those comic collections are nostalgic, classic, and wonderful for kids of all ages!
I don’t recognize the ice cream story, but I definitely remember the cookies. Growing up I think we only had “Frog and Toad Together” and “Frog and Toad are Friends.” And you are certainly not the first person I have heard draw out the profundities of such simple tales (for example, the cookies as an insightful commentary on the difficulty of enjoying good things in moderation).
When I was a kid – younger, but a stage past Frog and Toad – I remember reading a lot of Boxcar Children, Encyclopedia Brown and Hardy Boys (the boy mind’s natural interest in intrigue and mystery coupled with a well-intentioned parenting approach that excluded “dark” themes and “magic” until I was much older). I still recall the thrill of walking into a “big” library and heading straight for the long section of blue spines which signaled a vast collection of suspense and thrills in the lives of the (perpetually youthful) Frank and Joe Hardy.
The simplistic, mass-production ghostwriting approach eventually grew tiring, and as an adult I recognize the tremendous value of stories such as The Chronicles of Narnia (probably this adult’s most favorite children’s series). I’m afraid that either my exposure is too slim or my memory is too poor to summon any specific childhood favorites with which you are not already familiar. (I would suggest you visit The Shop Around the Corner in New York, but Fox Books put them out of business, so you’ll have to ask shopgirl directly. I guess I really ought to read the Shoe books she talks about in there.)
What are the key elements that make a good children’s story great? What’s the recipe for an enduring classic? I don’t have an answer in mind, but I would venture to suggest that moral certitude is a necessary component – that old-fashioned concept of promoting “virtue” which might today fall on deaf ears, as it dares the politically-incorrect suggestion that some things are wrong, others right. But at the end of the day, in our heart of hearts, we know that right is right and wrong is wrong, no matter how much we suppress it. And maybe that is more difficult to veil when we work, consciously or not, to inculcate certain timeless values into the next generation.
Well, this was fun! From one would-be aspiring writer to one who actually has a blog with readers, thanks! I look forward to your thoughts on the next stage of The Writer’s Journey (which is, I suspect, the same mythic structure which undergirds children’s literature, but even more subtlely).
P.S. Was that THE Neville, Neville Longbottom, the hero, you met at this imaginary dinner party? Or some other Neville?
Zoinks! What a stellar reply!
Boxcar Children were so classic, and I read maaany Hardy Boys (and Nancy Drew AND Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys SUPER MYSTERIES!) when I was early library age too. Before I knew about ghost writing, I do remember wondering why Nancy Drew’s hair changed from red to blonde to strawberry in different books.
I’ve never read the Shoe books! I should be ashamed.
I’m sure that values–the core or backbone or point to the action–is essential to a story that lasts. Also, I think there’s something magical in the illustrations of children’s books. They stamp our minds in ways we don’t realize until we see the same book years later. Try looking back at an old picture book some time. It’s a crazy feeling!
I hope you will enjoy the next installment as well!
And if I were invited to Neville Longbottom’s dinner party, I would have written about it for a whole post exclusively. Also, I would have been filling my plate with chocolate frogs and Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans instead of sandwiches. I only wish I were that lucky.
Thanks again for your reply!
Logan and I spent many happy hours reading the original Winnie the Pooh stories by A.A. Milne. The narrative, the humor, the characters, we just loved it. Another favorite was Alice in Wonderland for its quirky characters and logic puzzles.
I love BOTH of those so passionately, but especially Pooh! A. A. Milne was an absolute genius. Great choices!!
My new favorite is The Pout Pout Fish, it will become a classic. I will wait with bated breath for your review now.
Oh boy! I’ve never even heard of Pout Pout Fish, but it sounds like you’d be waiting with BAITED breath… 😉 I’ll have to give it a read! Thanks, Jill!