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I Can’t Said the Ant by Polly Cameron

This ridiculous rhyming story by Polly Cameron is a lark. Originally published in 1961, it’s the story of how the ant tries to help Miss Teapot who has fallen off the counter. The ant calls on everyone to help–all the kitchen foods and implements, and each one answers with a rhyme and and some helpful advice. With teamwork, they manage to rescue Miss Teapot, and “can’t” turns to “can”.

I Can’t Said the Ant is, alas, no longer in print. However, it’s fairly easy to find a copy of this book in a paperback edition. I’m not sure a hardcover edition was ever published, despite the fact that one hardcover copy is available on Amazon for an exorbitant price. Just get the paperback and enjoy the rhyming game that begins in your home when you read it.

The book is subtitled “A Second Book of Nonsense.” That subtitle made me wonder, of course, about the first book of nonsense by this author, and I found it with a little search online: A Child’s Book of Nonsense: 3 copycats, 3 batty birds, 3 crazy camels, a quail, and a snail by Polly Cameron, published in 1960. I’m not about to pay over $50 for a copy of the first book, which I’ve never seen, but I did find a couple of other books by Ms. Cameron on vimeo that I might check out:

The Dog Who Grew Too Much

The Cat Who Thought He Was a Tiger

"Thank you," said Miss Teapot, 
"You've been good to me. 
Polly, put the kettle on. 
We'll all have tea." 

I Can’t Said the Ant is one of the books listed in my Picture Book Preschool book. Picture Book Preschool is a preschool/kindergarten curriculum which consists of a list of picture books to read aloud for each week of the year as well as a character trait to introduce, a memory verse, and activities, all tied to the theme for the week. You can purchase a downloadable version (pdf file) of Picture Book Preschool by Sherry Early at Biblioguides.

Over in the Meadow by John Langstaff

Over in the Meadow by John Langstaff, illustrated by Feodor Rojankovsky.

Over in the meadow 
In the sand in the sun  
Lived an old mother turtle and her little turtle one. 
"Dig," said the mother, 
"I dig," said the one; 
So he dug and was glad in the sand in the sun.

John Meredith Langstaff was a musician and music educator who wrote children’s picture books, produced music education videos for the BBC, and published songbooks, music, and texts, all emphasizing traditional and folk songs and music. He started something called The Christmas Revels in New York City in 1957, and later in Cambridge, Massachusetts. These amateur performances involved singing, dancing, recitals, theatrics, and usually some audience participation, all appropriate to the holiday season. Langstaff died in 2005, but his Revels still go on in select cities across the United States at Christmas time.

Langstaff, of course, didn’t originate the lyrics for the song, Over in the Meadow, but neither did Olive A. Wadsworth, aka Katherine Floyd Dana, who is credited with writing the poem, Over in the Meadow, in several places online. Katherine Floyd Dana (under the pen name Olive A. Wadsworth) wrote down the words to the song that she heard possibly in Appalachia or the Ozarks, and Mabel Wood Hill notated the music. The words and music together were published in the book Kit, Fan, Tot, and the Rest of Them by the American Tract Society in 1870. Langstaff’s version of the lyrics is much different from Wadsworth’s, using different animals, and different actions, and different descriptions. It’s an old counting rhyme that may trace back to the 16th century, and there are many different versions.

There are also several picture book versions of the song available, including one illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats, another by Anna Vojtech, and yet another illustrated by one of my favorite picture book artists, Paul Galdone. Still, my favorite for this song is this Langstaff/Rojandovsky partnership version. I like Langstaff’s lyrics, and Rojankovsky’s illustrations are delightful, just busy enough without overwhelming, with lots of endearing animal detail. The beavers build; the spiders spin; the owls wink; and the chipmunks play—all the way up to ten rabbits who hop.

If you’re looking for more folk songs in picture book form, I would suggest:

  • Old MacDonald Had a Farm, illustrated by Lorinda Bryan Cauley. Putnam, 1989.
  • Hush, Little Baby, illustrated by Margot Zemach. Dutton, 1976.
  • Frog Went A’Courtin’ by John Langstaff, illustrated by Feodor Rojankovsky. Harcourt, 1967.
  • Mary Wore Her Red Dress, and Henry Wore His Green Sneakers, adapted and illustrated by Merle Peek. Clarion, 1985.
  • Fox Went out on a Chilly Night, illustrated by Peter Spier. Doubleday, 1961.

All of these folk song picture books are listed in my Picture Book Preschool curriculum guide. Picture Book Preschool is a preschool/kindergarten curriculum which consists of a list of picture books to read aloud for each week of the year and a character trait, a memory verse, and activities, all tied to the theme for the week. You can purchase a downloadable version (pdf file) of Picture Book Preschool by Sherry Early at Biblioguides.

Picture Book Preschool–Come and Get It

I’m excited because, beginning today, you can purchase a pdf copy of my preschool curriculum book, Picture Book Preschool, from the book website, Biblioguides. Picture Book Preschool is a preschool curriculum based on picture books I have been reading to my children, and now grandchildren, for the past twenty years. Each week of the year is built around a theme, and includes a suggested character trait to work on, a Bible verse, a supporting activity, and seven suggested picture books to read to your children. Now you can find all of the Picture Book Preschool recommendations on Biblioguides and purchase a PDF of the curriculum which includes all of the supporting resources and schedule.And while you’re at it, check out Biblioguides, a great resource for finding books and book information to enrich your own education and that of your children.

If you would prefer a print copy of Picture Book Preschool, you can email me at sherryDOTpray4youATgmailDOTcom.

Poet of the Day: Eve Merriam

Whatever you do, find ways to read poetry. Eat it, drink it, enjoy it, and share it.

I find it difficult to sit still when I hear poetry or read it out loud. I feel a tingling feeling all over, particularly in the tips of my fingers and in my toes, and it just seems to go right from my mouth all the way through my body. It’s like a shot of adrenalin or oxygen when I hear rhymes and word play.

~Eve Merriam

Poet Eve Merriam was born July 19, 1916. She is the author of three books in my library. Epaminondas and A Gaggle of Geese are listed in my Picture Book Preschool curriculum book and are favorites of mine to read aloud. I also have Ms. Merriam’s book 12 Ways to Get to 11, a delightful book that combines mathematics and poetry and imagination.

Eve Merriam was well known as a children’s poet. She wrote several collections of poetry for young people, including Blackberry Ink, The Inner City Mother Goose, Funny Time, Higgle Wiggle: Happy Rhymes, and It Doesn’t Always Have to Rhyme, as well as many picture books and nonfiction biographies and nature books for children. However, she also wrote poetry for adults and had her work published in magazines and journals such as Poetry Magazine. The following poem, The Escape, comes from the October 1940 edition of Poetry Magazine.

THE ESCAPE

Suddenly in the subway
not having had time to purchase a paper at the newsstand
and having read all the car-cards
(even the Alka-Seltzer verse ones)
I came face to face with my immortal soul
and since it was three stations until my stop
I grew worried;
until I saw a boy passing through the various trains
distributing leaflets upon constipation and cure;
they were printed on both sides, with fine close print at the bottom,
so there was nothing to worry about really, nothing at all.

What a narrow escape! Nowadays, she would always be accompanied by her cellphone to distract from thoughts too dreadful to contemplate. I do recommend Ms. Merriam’s children’s books and poetry not as a distraction, but rather to encounter whimsy and perhaps even thoughts of immortality.

Picture Book Preschool is a preschool/kindergarten curriculum which consists of a list of picture books to read aloud for each week of the year and a character trait, a memory verse, and activities, all tied to the theme for the week. You can purchase an updated, downloadable version (pdf file) of Picture Book Preschool by Sherry Early at Biblioguides.

Apricot ABC by Miska Miles

I really like this little alphabet book because, unlike many ABC books that are just collections of objects or words, it’s a rhyming poem that also tells a story. With frequent alliteration showcasing the letter that is featured on each page, author Miska Miles tells the story of an apricot that falls to the ground and is the subject of much talk and investigation by the varied inhabitants of the meadow where the apricot lands.

Then, comes the conflict of the story when a monstrous hen comes along, threatening to trample or even devour all of the insects and other small creatures in the meadow. Can the creatures hide themselves quickly enough to escape the hen? What will happen when the hen finds the apricot? How will the story of the little apricot end, only to begin again in the cycle of nature?

Young tree will flower, fruit will grow,

While crickets click and roosters crow

And sparrows cheep

And locusts leap.

Young fruit will ripen in the sun

And busy creatures, one by one,

Will hop or jump or creep to see

Yellow-ripe apricots fall from the tree.

The pictures by illustrator Peter Parnall hide a capital letter in each page of the double page spreads, and children will have fun finding the hidden letters as they view each page. The colors are mostly natural greens, browns, and oranges with little splashes of color now and again for the sake of interest—and flowers.

I highly recommend Apricot ABC for your alphabet book or poetry picture book collection. Author Miska Miles, aka Patricia Miles Martin, also wrote Annie and the Old One, a Newbery Honor book in 1972, and several other lovely picture books. Peter Parnall’s illustrations can also be found in Year on Muskrat Marsh by Berniece Freschet and The Moon of the Wild Pigs by Jean Craighead George as well as in several picture books that Mr. Parnall wrote and illustrated himself.

Norman the Doorman by Don Freeman

Don Freeman wrote many picture books, but he is probably best known for his books about Corduroy, the stuffed bear that belongs to a girl named Lisa. My children enjoyed the Corduroy stories, but perhaps their favorite book by Don Freeman was this one, Norman the Doorman.

Norman is a mouse who lives in the basement of the Majestic Museum of Art. He stands daily in front of a “small, well-hidden hole” and welcomes all of the art-loving mice visitors who come to the museum to see the treasures kept in the basement. Norman also acts as a guide, pointing out and explaining the artwork to cousins and strangers alike. And finally, Norman protects his art patrons from the sharp-eyed upstairs guard (human) by preemptively springing all of the traps and by keeping a sharp eye out himself for the guard and his flashlight.

The story goes on to tell of Norman’s artistic aspirations and of how he manages to enter a sculpture competition even though he’s much tinier than all of the other entrants. Norman is just an endearing and humble little mouse with a good lesson to teach the rest of us. “Each night after work he tried to create something pleasing or beautiful—perhaps a painting of Swiss cheese and crackers, or a statue.” Now, what if we all tried to create something pleasing or beautiful each day?

Don Freeman’s illustrations for his story are pleasing and beautiful themselves. Watercolor pencil drawings make Norman and his adventures as well as scenes from the museum itself a lovely sight to behold. In addition, since one of Norman’s art pieces is a sculpture made of wire, this book might be a good introduction for younger children to the idea of sculpture and mobiles. You might even want to have some wires or or pipe cleaners or other sculpting materials on hand to work with after reading Norman the Doorman. (Another book about making things out of wire is Galimoto by Karen Lynn Williams.)

Always Room for One More by Sorche Nic Leodhas

This Caldecott award-winning picture book does have some interesting illustrations. Basically, they’re done with black and white cross-hatch lines, with a splash of purple color on each page. I guess the purple alludes to the heather? Since the book is a retelling of a Scottish folk song?

Sorche Nic Leodhas, whose real name was LeClaire Gowans Alger, was an American librarian of Scottish extraction. Her father and grandfather handed down this folk song to her when she was a child, and she re-wrote it to make it a bit more friendly to American children, taking out some of the Scottish dialect and replacing it with more familiar English words. There’s still plenty of Scottish flavor and dialect left in the song as presented in this picture book, and there’s also a glossary in the back of the book to translate those Scottish words and phrases.

In the story song, householder Lachie MacLachlan welcomes all of the travelers who pass by his door to come in and rest a while, saying “There’s room galore! There’s room for one more! There’s always room for one more!” He welcomes so many visitors that his house, already full with Lachie and his wife and ten bairns, is literally filled to bursting, and everyone who’s enjoying the hospitality must decide what to do next when the house “with its but and its ben and its walls and its roof DINGED DOWN!” (Tumbled down)

So, this book is a folk song. I very much appreciate the printed music, also in the back of the book, for a suggested tune for this song, but what I’d really like to have is a video or recorded version online where I could listen to the song as it’s meant to be sung. This book is a little bit difficult to read aloud what with the unfamiliar words and the inconsistent rhythm of the song. I looked for a video version, but I couldn’t find one. I would suggest picking out the melody on the piano if you can before reading/singing the book aloud with a child. That would make it a lot more fun.

On a couple of review sites I checked, most people were not too fond of the illustration style in this little book, with pictures by Nonny Hogrogian. They are rather different, but a close look might inspire a child or an adult to try some of the same. I kind of enjoyed the style that Hogrogian chose, once I got used to it.

If you enjoy this picture book and the story it tells, you might like Sorche Nic Leodhas’s longer compilation of Scottish folk tales, Thistle and Thyme: Tales and Legends from Scotland. This folk tale anthology won a Newbery Honor in 1963, and it’s a good source for anyone interested investigating old Scottish tales or one’s own Scottish heritage.

August 5th Thoughts

Today is my son-in-law’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Brandon!

Other birthdays today:
Ruth Sawyer (Durand), b. 1880, d. 1970. Ruth Sawyer was first and foremost a storyteller. She wrote several children’s books, including the Newbery award-winning Roller Skates, but her forte was collecting and telling stories derived from folklore from around the world. I have her book The Way of the Storyteller, a sort of manual/inspiration for storytellers, and I need to review it to refresh my own storytelling skills.

Maud Petersham, b. 1890. Maud was the female half of the storytelling, book writing duo of Maud and Miska Petersham. She was born Maud Fuller, the daughter of a Baptist minister, graduated from Vassar College, and met Miska Petersham, a Hungarian immigrant, when they were both working at a advertising agency in New York. The couple went on to collaborate on more than fifty books, and they contributed illustrations for numerous anthologies and collections of stories and poems for children. Their collection of American poems and songs, The Rooster Crows, won the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1946.

Robert Bright, b. 1902. Bright wrote Georgie, a picture book about “a friendly and shy little ghost who lives in Mr. and Mrs. Whittaker’s attic.” But my favorite book by Bright is My Red Umbrella, in which a little girl shares her red umbrella even as it grows bigger and bigger to shelter all of the animals that come to get out of the rain, including a great big bear.

I’m also thinking and praying today about weddings (about to celebrate one this weekend), gun violence and the people who were injured and traumatized by violent men in Dayton and in El Paso, Abraham Lincoln and the violence he caused, endured, and ended (still reading Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin), Hiroshima and the violence there (tomorrow is the 73rd anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima). Since Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, we humans are a violent race. It’s not a cure-all by any means, but I can’t see why legislation to ban the use by civilians of certain military-style weapons or to limit the size of magazines would be an infringement on the Constitution or on anyone’s freedom or rights under that Constitution.

Millions of Cats by Wanda Gag

For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

~Galatians 5:14-15, 25-26

In the picture book Millions of Cats, an old man who is looking for a cat, finds a hill covered in cats, “hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats.” It’s too difficult to choose just one, so the old man chooses two, three, four, more—until he just chooses them all. But when he gets home with all of the cats, the little old woman says they can only afford to keep one. and so the cats begin to argue and fight about which of them is the prettiest, the best one to be kept and loved and petted by the very old man and the very old woman.

The cats “began to quarrel.” “They bit and scratched and clawed each other” until they have eaten each other all up. Isn’t this just the picture that Galatians 5:15 gives of Christians who are biting and devouring one another until we are all consumed by one another? And haven’t you seen this story played out in homes, in churches, in community groups, and on the internet? One person begins to become conceited, provoking others to retaliate, to try to build themselves up to look better than the first. We all begin envying one another, tearing one another down, admiring ourselves, biting and scratching, figuratively speaking, of course, until we eat each other up.

In Millions of Cats, there is one little humble cat who does not participate in the grand melee. He’s a “very homely little cat” who hides himself away during the battle and only comes out when it is all over. Of course, it is this homely little cat who becomes the much loved pet, “the most beautiful cat in the whole world.” (He’s the only one left!) The homely little cat gets to come home and be loved.

Let’s be like that cat, walk in the Spirit, in humility, and hide ourselves away from the backbiting and clawing and scratching that goes on in our world. Whether it’s in our workplaces or our churches or even our own homes, let’s stay away from the envy and conceit that pervade our world and instead look for every opportunity to love our neighbor as ourselves. Then, we will be in step with the Spirit, and we will be loved as we love one another.

Born on This Day: Vera B. Williams, 1927-2015

Vera B. Williams was an American illustrator and author who wrote several popular picture books for children. The two that I’m most familiar with are A Chair for My Mother, which won a Newbery Honor, and Three Days on a River in a Red Canoe, the story journal of a mother-daughter-aunt canoe trip. A Chair fro My Mother is a beautiful homely story about a girl whose family experiences a fire in their apartment. No one is hurt, but all of their possessions are destroyed in the fire. Their community and family come together to give them things to help them start again, but the one things they don’t have is a soft, comfortable chair for the girl’s mother to relax in after a hard day of work at the diner. SO the family begins to save up their money in a big jar to buy a chair for mother (and grandmother who lives with them). It’s such a good book about a working class family and about how families work together to manage their money and save for something important. I feel as if the book teaches gratitude and delayed gratification and teamwork and so much more, but in a story, not a sermon.

Ms. Williams’ bio sounds as if she led a colorful life: she helped start a “community” (sounds like a commune) in the hills of North Carolina and a school based on the Summerhill model. Then she moved to Canada and lived on a houseboat for a while, where she illustrated her first book. Oh, and she spent a month in the federal penitentiary in West Virginia after a “peaceful blockade of the Pentagon.”

“I don’t make a point of ending up in jail. But if you try to put your hopes and beliefs for a better life into effect, arrest is sometimes a hazard. As a person who works for children, who raised three children … I have to be able to say I did something to try to save our planet from destruction.”

It sounds as if our politics may differ, but I do appreciate Ms. Williams’ books.