Book Reviews – Page 52

Timeless Fun

Good, old-fashioned fun is pretty hard to beat, even with all the technology today’s kids have at their fingertips. Looking back at my childhood, I spent an inordinate amount of time reading, but I did come away from the books long enough to create some awesome memories: making bubble blowing solution from hibiscus; sailing paper boats in the gutter; chasing shadows under the street lamp; and drawing chalk pictures on the pavement.

Nostalgia kicked in when I first saw the hardcover volumes of The Dangerous Book for Boys by Gonn and Hal Iggunen and The Daring Book for Girls by Andrea Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz a couple of years ago at the bookstores. I got The Daring Book for Girls when I swapped a book internationally, and just a few weeks ago, I got The Dangerous Book for Boys in the bargain pile at the Manila International Book Fair.

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A Little History of the World

I enjoy trivia of all sorts, so when a friend loaned me his copy of E.H. Gombrich’s A Little History of the World, I gladly dove into many hours of fascinating reading.

A Little History of the World is a compact volume that tells us the story of mankind, from the Stone Age to the atomic bomb. Told as stories, it’s simple enough for young readers to understand without getting the feeling of being patronized, and entertaining enough for adults who have already gone through years of history classes.

Gombrich, an art historian (you may recognize the name from the book The Story of Art), wrote this book in 1935 with the intention of presenting a history of the world for younger readers. The book was actually originally written in German, was banned by the Nazis for being too “pacifist,” and was only translated in English by Gombrich himself (mostly, reportedly, but the book credits his assistant Caroline Mustill as the translator) towards the end of his life (he died in 2001, at 92, still working on it).

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Oldies but Goodies (Picture Book Roundup)

I haven’t done a picture book roundup in quite a while, and they have been piling up quite a bit on my desk, so in the effort to liberate some desk space, here’s a roundup of some vintage picture books I’ve amassed this year, some from bargain bookstores, some from Bookmooch.

Included in this roundup are the books: The Pooh Storybook; The Slant Book; Dick Whittington and his Cat; One Wide River to Cross; Journey Cake, Ho; The Judge; Anansi the Spider; Three Jovial Huntsmen; Anno’s Alphabet; Friends; and two versions of Stone Soup, books #117-128 for 2010. Phew!

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Banned Books Week (and the naked Mickey!)

September 25 to October 2 is Banned Books Week, an annual event that celebrates the freedom to read.

Spearheaded by the American Library Association, the celebration of Banned Books Week emphasizes intellectual freedom, “the freedom to access information and express ideas, even if the information and ideas might be considered unorthodox or unpopular.”

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Click, Clack, Moo

I’ve been looking for a copy of the Caldecott Honor book Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type (by Doris Cronin, illustrated by Betsy Lewin) for my picture book collection for a couple of years now. It’s been elusive, and I was beginning to think I would have to get it full price so I didn’t count on finding this wonderful Click, Clack, Moo: A Book and Playset for only P85 at my favorite bargain book haunt.

Housed in a red barn is a board book of Click, Clack Moo, which tells the hilarious story of disgruntled cows who learn to use a typewriter to express their grievances in a series of notes addressed to Farmer Brown.

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