A House for Christmas Mouse by Rebecca Harry

"Mouse knew that the perfect home needed to be warm and cosy, with plenty of food to eat, and more importantly, friends to share it with."

As an adult who reads tons and tons of picture books I think it important to remind yourself that for a child this book, any book, is a new experience.  The plot of this book will be very familiar to adults and it is very easy to anticipate the happy ending but your very young reading companion won't have that expectation and that is why this is a truly sweet Christmas story. Oh and this book is sprinkled with glitter pages and shiny illustrations which are sure to be enjoyed especially at Christmas. Here is the web site for Rebecca Harry. 

I picked this book up this morning at a charity book sale. It is a fairly new book (2020) but it was only $1 while the actual retail price is $23 [9781788006897]. One of the real treats for m, at this end of year book fair, is arriving through the door to the first table which is always filled with Christmas stories. I picked up about ten from the table this year.

It is Christmas Eve and little Mouse is in a hurry to find a new home before it gets dark. As she scurries along she meets some other forest animals. Each of them has a small problem. Our little hero Mouse does not hesitate. She steps right up and helps each of them in turn.

Bunny need help with setting up her warm fire in her cosy burrow.

Fox is keen to make a cake but time is running out. Mouse lends a hand and then leaves the den with the delicious smell of fresh cake wafting behind her. 

Bear want to decorate his cave but he needs another pair of hands. With the help of Mouse the cave soon looks so perfect and festive.

Finally Mouse finds a small hollow in a tree trunk. It is  desolate place but it is empty. She runs outside to gather some leaves to make her bed. Outside she sees each of her friends but when she tries to say hello they all rush past - too busy to pay her any attention. 

"Mouse sadly trudged back to her new house."

Have you guessed what all those busy friends were doing? 

Until quite recently I didn't pay very much attention to publishers. Of course I knew books from Walker Books UK and Candlewick USA are always splendid and that our New Zealand friends at Gecko Press can be relied on to publish wonderful books from around the world. My book today comes from Nose Crow. Add that name to your list of splendid publishers - you absolutely will never be disappointed if you find a book published by Nosy Crow - they are always terrific. 

One last thing - I find the title of this book quite intriguing. Mouse needs a house and it is Christmas time so this book is about a house for a mouse but it also about a house where everyone comes together to celebrate Christmas and of course Mouse herself looks like a Christmas mouse with her jaunty green scarf and red pack. The snow filled pages are soft and almost tactile and the gentle messages of kindness, time, generosity and true friendship resonate though this lovely story. 

A Letter for Bear by David Lucas

"Bear was a postman. There were always lots of letters to deliver. 

But there were never any letters for Bear."

So what do we now know about Bear? Read the words and look closely at the illustrations. He is a hard worker. He delivers the letters no matter what the weather is like. And he is so lonely. On this day the weather is very cold and windy and all the precious letters fall into the snow.  Bear cannot read the address labels so he is forced to visit every home but this makes for the perfect turning point in this story because, in a wonderful scene, he finally meets all his customers.

It has been a day filled with conversations but, arriving home, alone again, Bear feels even more lonely. Luckily Bear is not a guy who wallows in his sorrow. He is a problem solver!

Dear Friends,

Please come to my Christmas party.

Yours sincerely the Postman.

This book has perfectly paced page turns. On the next page we see Bear decorating his cave. On the next page we see him waiting and waiting and waiting. Oh dear no one is coming.

Turn the page again. 

"But then he heard a sweet, and a squeak, and lots of shy little voices saying 'May be come in?"

Everyone enjoys a splendid party but the best surprise of all comes the next day when Bear heads off to work only to discover all of the letter are for him. Can you guess what they say?

Perhaps you are wondering about his arctic friends - they are all included on the back end paper - ptarmigan, robin, arctic fox, snow bunting, ermine, snowy owl, lemming, arctic red poll, arctic hare and waxwing. 

I spied this little book when I was shelving a huge collection of Christmas books in the library I visit each week. It caught my eye because it looked like a different Christmas story, the colours on the cover appealed to me and I like the way the letters of the title have been created with a geometric filler. Inside each page also has a geometric border using these same colours - pink, orange, pale aqua blue and white. 

The illustrations are a marvel to take in with their bold, limited color palette and all the intricate pattern details throughout. I would think that David Lucas has a grand time creating his illustrations. They must cheer just about any heart and I hope they delight yours. Three Books a Night

A wintry, holiday read much like a gingerbread house: ...  poignant, sweet, soul-warming and studded with delicious details that warrant close inspection. Kirkus Star review

This one caught my eye since this rather sweet little bear is on the front cover carrying a large satchel and wearing a smart red peaked cap! I love that Bear is a postman. It seems the right kind of job for him to be doing. But I wasn't entirely prepared for the sad turn the story would take! The Book Bag

Since this book was published in 2013 it is now sadly out of print but I there seem to be plenty of used copies available and as I always say, you might be lucky and find this in a local or school library. Take a look here to see other books by UK author/illustrator David Lucas. See inside this book here.

Here is the perfect companion book:

The Lonely Mailman

I am very keen to read more books by David Lucas:

The Little Match Girl Strikes Back by Emma Carroll illustrated by Lauren Child

 

Bridie Sweeney wants to tell you a better story, a more truthful story, a less tragic story about the real little match girl. The year is 1887 (the year my own Grandmother Amy Elizabeth was born).

The old story was "so sweet and sad, people would snivel into their hankies upon reading it, and it soon because famous the world over. It made the man who wrote it very rich indeed, though I don't suppose he'd ever met a real match girl in his life. If he had he'd have know we weren't all pretty things with fair curls and tiny, freezing hands, and that most of us were fed up with being hungry all the time."

Bridie lives with her mother, who works at the match factory, and her younger brother Fergal. They live in a tiny room and just scrape by with small wages from the factory and the few coins Bridie makes selling matches in London's East End. 

Conditions in the factory are dreadful. Mam, and the other women who work there, are subject to the poison of the phosphorus from the matches (phossy jaw). There is no ventilation in their work space and they cannot wash their hands before eating. 

"I couldn't imagine how bad it was inside the factory building. Mam was a dipper, dunking the matchsticks in phosphorus, which meant she - and many others like her - stood bent over the stuff all day long without so much as an open window for air."

The factory is based on the real one The Bryant and May factory. Here are their match boxes:

Image source: National Archives UK

Bridie sets out to sell her matches and on this day things go well at first. She sells all of her boxes and is able to pick up another set from the factory. But this is when things go badly wrong. She is nearly killed when a carriage containing the factory boss hits her. All of her matches are spilled, her tray is smashed and the too big slippers, which belong to her mam, are lost. Bridie has only three damaged matches left. She strikes each of them in turn, and, as in the original tale, she enters a series of visions. She experiences the excesses of the rich factory boss and his family at their dining table. Then she meets a activist who wants to support the factory workers and demand change. Finally she is given a glimpse of her final wish - "I wish to see my family living a better life".

This is historical fiction at its best. At the back of the book there are notes which explain the context of factory workers, match production, the role of the activist Annie Besant (1847-1933) who published letters in newspapers all over England which led people to support the striking factory workers. It all takes a long time but by 1908 the use of white phosphorus is banned. 

The production of this book is scrumptious!  Yes I am using the word scrumptious.  This hardcover book costs under AUS$20 and it has a dust jacket (you know I adore them) and a different image under the jacket (another aspect of book design that I really appreciate). The illustrations by Lauren Child are perfect too. If you have a young reading companion aged 10+ I highly recommend this book. It would be a perfect Christmas present.

It’s a thrilling tale and Bridie is a wonderful character brought stunningly to life in Lauren Child’s magnificently beautiful illustrations, many of them based on real photographs of match sellers and workers from the time. The innovative layout of the text makes this a particularly vibrant read. Emma Carroll and Lauren Child are a brilliant pairing and this book would make a wonderful gift. Book Trust

Further reading

Kids Britannica "Match girls' strike"

English Heritage 

Historic UK

Spartacus Educational

I would follow this book with these:

Counting on Grace

Bread and Roses Too

Of course you will also want to revisit the original story. Some very talented people have illustrated versions of this famous Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale - Jerry Pinkney; Rachel Isadora; Kveta Pacovska; Kestutis Kasparavicius and Hye-Won Yang.

I have previously talked about several books by Emma Carroll:

Letters from the Lighthouse

Sky Chasers

The Week at World's End

In Darkling Wood

The Ghost Garden

Waiting for the Storks by Katrina Nannestad

"Then he takes a smaller tool, like a ruler with little sliding bits, and measures my ears 

and ear holes and earlobes, the thickness of my lips, the distance between my eyes, 

the length and width of my nose and lots of other bits in between. 

Herr Doktor takes one last lap around me, staring, then declares, 

'It is a perfect head!"

Krakow, Poland is a dangerous place. Zofia Ulinski, her Mama and Tata (father) know there are huge risks now that the Nazis have invaded their city. Zofia and her family are Catholic not fewish but these German conquerors have banned so many every day things.

"They marched into Krakow, acting as though it was their city, not ours. ... they started closing libraries and schools, radio stations and newspapers, synagogues and universities ... burned books (and) ... started rounding up teachers and writers and doctors and artists and priests and professors and sending them off to concentration camps."

Tata is a tailor and he is also working for the resistance. As this story opens there are some parcels that need to be delivered. Mama and Zofia offer to take them and of course they promise to stay in the shadows and avoid crowded busy streets. They carry the carefully wrapped parcels in two baskets. One parcel contains a green striped velvet suit for Mr Wojcik. It is almost impossible to find materials for new clothes so this strange colourful suit has been made from his dining room curtains. On their way to make their deliveries they meet three German soldiers. I think I held my breath through the whole scene as the SS guards ripped open the parcels and threw their precious contents onto the muddy gutter. Zofia knows should stay quiet, she should not draw attention to herself but this is all so outrageous. She screams stop - and she screams it in German. 

"The first soldier puts his finger under my chin and lifts my face. He gazes into my eyes and his smile widens. ... The second soldier pulls off my headscarf. He takes one of my long blonde plaits in his hand and holds it out. All three chatter about my clear blue eyes, my pale skin, my shiny golden hair."

What does all of this mean? Read this statement (found on the very first page of this book):

"I really do have the intention to gather Germanic blood from the whole world, to rob it, to steal it wherever I can. Heinrich Himmler, Commander of the SS, 1938."

Little eight year old Zofia has no idea that she is about to be kidnapped, taken to Germany, held in an orphanage where she will be re-educated as a perfect German child.  In this horrid place the children (all blonde and perfect) are given clothes, shoes, and plenty of food but the punishments are brutal and their are constant medical and psychological tests. She will be told, over and over again, a new story about her life and a will be given a new name and new identity. And of course there is the constant cry of Heil Hitler. 

During one of the medical examinations, an important doctor arrives - Doctor Engels (adult readers are sure to shudder at the mention of this infamous name). He takes a special interest in young Zofria who is now named Sophia Ullman. 

"Once I was Zofia Ulinaki, a stupid Polish pig. Now I am Sophia Ullman, a good German girl, a princess, with a perfect head, golden hair, blue eyes and hairless arms."

Doctor Engels takes Zofia to his home. Bavaria looks like the land of fairy tales. At his farm she meets her new Mutti (mother).

"This is just like a fairy tale where a girl thinks she's an orphan but, after many years of hardship is found by her mother and father and not only are they kind and loving, but they are also the queen and king of a very grand kingdom. Of course this isn't a fairy tale. This is a lie. The girl is me and I'm not an orphan or a long-lost princess, but a Polish girl who already has a mother and a father. But the lie is all I have. It's the only thing that will keep me safe".

Yesterday I picked up Waiting for the Storks and by 8pm I had read the whole book - yes it is, as I expected, another fabulous page turner from Katrina Nannestad and another book where she gave me an insight into an aspect of history - specifically of World War II and dreadful programs in Germany, which were entirely new to me.  Each section of the book is prefaced with a question which mirrors a game Zofia used to play with her parents - a game of choices:

• Cream on your salami or gravy on your poppyseed cake? Make a choice!
• German or Polish? Make a choice!
• Real life or a fairy tale? Make a choice!
• A sausage dog in a bonnet or a cat in a cardigan? Make a choice!
• A happy traitor or a miserable hero? Make a choice!
• A crimson spotted velvet skirt or a green striped velvet coat? Make a choice!

There were times in this book when I was SO tempted to jump to the end. I always know I am safe inside a middle grade book and that the author will protect me (and keep the loved character safe) but I deeply feared a sad ending. I just couldn't imagine how Zofia could possibly escape from this dreadful situation return to her real life. I am going to predict that this book will be a Children's Book Council of Australia Younger Readers notable title and I am sure it will also be short listed (6 books). 

Nannestad refuses to patronise her readership (while remaining age-appropriate) and her clarity and emotional intelligence will make it easy for younger readers to put themselves in Zofia’s shoes. Sydney Morning Herald

I think this is a powerful and important book that can start conversations and introduce readers to a different aspect of history that they may not know about or know much about – and that is why I love Katrina Nannestad’s historical fiction books. They give voices to people who might have been left out of history and allow us to gain insight into important history that might not be taught often. The Book Muse

Further reading:

US Holocaust Memorial Museum

The Lebensborn program also became involved in the kidnappings of thousands of foreign children. During the war, the SS sought out ethnic Germans living in foreign countries and “repatriated” them to the Third Reich. Thousands of children—mostly from eastern and southeastern Europe—were kidnapped because they had German ancestry or simply the “appropriate racial features.” The Lebensborn program then helped place these children with German families. Adopting families believed that the children had been orphaned by the war.

New York Times, November 2006

Teaching notes for Waiting for the Storks from the publisher

When you share this book or gift or borrow this book for a mature reader aged 11+ try to also find a copy of the Aesop fable - The Fox and the Stork.

You will want to read these previous books by Katrina Nannestad which also explore the impact of events during World War II on young children. I love these covers by Martina Heiduczek. This morning I discovered the Star review by Kirkus of We are Wolves. 

We are Wolves

Rabbit, Soldier, Angel, Thief

In all three novels Nannestad shows the intense personal cost to children caught up in wars not of their making, forced to adapt and become strangers to their true selves in order to survive. Storylinks

Carefully and sensitively written, meticulously researched, the whole is a dissection of how the choices we make every day affect our lives and the lives of those we love. This (Waiting for the Storks) is the bleakest of these three novels but also the most powerful, most moving and most memorable. Storylinks

Image Source: Facebook

The Shop Train by Josie Wowolla Boyle illustrated by Paul Seden

"The railway track stretches across the plains as far as the eye can see. 

Rosie and her mother are waiting in the crowd to catch their first glimpse of the train."

Blurb Magabala Books: The Shop Train was inspired by the Tea and Sugar train that began operating in 1917 to provide supplies and services for rail workers and people living in remote communities between Port Augusta in South Australia and Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. The Shop Train is a heartwarming story about Rosie and her mum, and the rickety journey in their old car to pick up stores from the shop train. The train carried everything they needed, and was an exciting time for all who lived near its tracks. Rosie and her mum slowly wind their way through Wonghi country, on its dusty tracks and never-ending horizon, until they reach the train, brimming with activity and treasures from other places. Paul Seden’s evocative illustrations effortlessly capture a bygone era, rendering the past with a deep sense of nostalgia, whilst capturing its uncluttered beauty. The Shop Train was inspired by similar journeys author Josie Wowolla Boyle took as a young girl. It was these journeys that left unforgettable memories on Josie, no matter how young or old she may have been.

Here are a set of teachers notes for this book. I love the ending of The Shop Train where Rosie and her mum arrive home with their "fluffy flour, grainy rice, fine sugar, powdered milk, arrowroot biscuits and black tea leaves". Unfortunately, as they have travelled over the bumpy road, the paper bags have "split open and everything is mixed together".  

Luckily mum has a yandy or yandi dish. Mum is able to use this to sort out all the mixed up foods.

It would be good to read this book alongside Tea and Sugar Christmas and to compare the illustrations by Robert Ingpen with the work of Paul Seden. 

Illustration by Paul Seden

The pencil illustrations by Paul Seden, from the Wuthathi and Muralag people of North Queensland, give the reader a real sense of the vastness of the landscape. With the low scrub, flat plains, and Australian animals dotted around, it is difficult to imagine anyone living there. Glam Adelaide

Similar scene by Robert Ingpen

The Big Princess by Taro Miura

A geometric kaleidoscope of digital images 

and collage forms the bones of this winsome tale. Kikus

"Once upon a time in a land far, far away, there lived a king and queen. The king and queen had no children of their own, but they had a beautiful garden full of all kinds of flowers."

A white bird comes into the king's dream and tells him they will find a child in their garden but she is under spell and if the spell is not broken "your kingdom will fall to ruins and be lost forever."

The king and queen do find a tiny baby in their garden. She is almost as small as a dew drop but each day she grows bigger and bigger until she is as tall as the tallest tower beside the castle. Everyone is in despair but the king notices something strange.

"There in the tower window! It was the princess's belly button and something was hidden inside it ... something shiny."  It is a seed!

Image source: Garden Tech

This is a book which uses a fairy tale story form with very appealing illustrations designed around geometric shapes. Perhaps it is also a fable that explains the origin of huge sunflowers and why they are so tall.  This book was originally published in Japan in 2013 and then Walker books published the English version in 2014. 

Illustrated with colourful cutouts, this book is a visual delight. The unique digital collage artwork will inspire a host of related art activities. School Library Journal

I would love to pair this book with a very old book that I once had in a school library. It is a book I search for at every used book sale - The Story of Imelda who was Small by Morris Lurie illustrated by Terry Denton.

Taro Miura is a Japanese-born author and illustrator of many books for children, including The Tiny King and The Big Princess. He graduated from Osaka University of the Arts, and his work has featured in both domestic exhibitions and international book fairs. He was awarded the Sankei Children's Book Art Award in 2011 for his picture book Chiisa na osama (The Tiny King). He lives and works in Tokyo.

Once upon a time there was a tiny king who lived in a big castle guarded by lots of big soldiers. Every day the Tiny King eats an enormous feast at his big dining table (he can never finish it all), he rides on his big horse (he is so tiny that he's thrown off every time), bathes in his big bath (not much fun), and sleeps, not very well, in his big bed all alone. Everything is just too big, and the Tiny King is sad and lonely. Until one day he meets a big princess and asks her to be his queen. Not long after, they are blessed with children - lots of children! Now everything is just the right size. The enormous meals are always gobbled up, his horse is just the right size for family outings, bath time is a real riot, and the Tiny King sleeps soundly at last.  Here is a review in Seven Impossible things.

Taro Miura has a very distinct art style that really appeals to me though sadly many of his books are now out of print. I do like the look of his board books. I wish more of them were available in English.  Here are two I found along with some in Japanese.

Look to the North by Jean Craighead George illustrated by Lucia Washburn

 

Boulder, Scree and Talus arrive in the world blind and deaf, weighing only one pound. But soon they are playing, tumbling, and howling - all important lessons to learn as they grow up to face 

the challenges of their alpine environment.

I do have to begin this post by telling you this book was published in 1997 so it is long out of print. The library I visit each week hold onto their books knowing they are treasures and they take such good care of their collection that this book continues to look almost brand new even though their paperback copy was purchased in 2014. I noticed this book on the blog Kinderbookswitheverything which is why I borrowed it today. 

You are sure to recognise the name Jean Craighead George (1919-2012) because she is the author of Julie of the Wolves which won the Newbery Medal and My Side of the Mountain. She actually wrote over 100 books. Read more here on this blog post from Kinderbookswitheverything. 

Here is the publisher blurb for Look to the North: Newbery Medalist Jean Craighead George lovingly tells the story of three wolf pups--from the moment they open their eyes to the time they lead the hunt. Lyrical passages in her wolf pup diary describe how the pups tumble and play and when they first learn to howl and talk wolk talk. Readers are reminded of the changes in nature that are happening in the lower 48 states as they look to the north to watch the wolf pups grow. Jean George's words and Lucia Washburn's breathtaking paintings give the reader a rare glimpse of one of nature's noblest creatures: the wolf.

The information, told in the form of a diary, about the wolf pups who grow from one day to eleven months is interesting but it is the cover and illustrations that drew me to this book. I haven't been able to discover much about the illustrator but this book was her debut and she has illustrated other non fiction books especially about dinosaurs and junior non fiction for the series - Penguin Young Readers. I am keen to see these book even though they are also long out of print.