Benjamin the lonely dragon by Marc Craste

 

"Once there lived a sad little dragon named Benjamin. He was sad because he didn't have any friends. None of the other dragons in his small village would play with him. You see Benjamin had a problem - he was afraid of fire."

The plot line for this book is very familiar.  The dragon has no fire, he leaves home in disgrace, meets a new friend, performs a heroic deed, finds his fire and returns home a hero.

The special feature here is the tender relationship between Benjamin, the dragon and Roger his little hedgehog friend. The best demonstration of this relationship comes when Benjamin calls Roger - Rog and Roger called Benjamin - Ben.  I know this sounds simple but this was a moment in the story which, pardon the pun, warmed my heart.

"Then, just as Benjamin thought he would collapse from cold and tiredness, he noticed a small, dark shape on the ground ahead. Peering through the snow, he saw that it was indeed Roger, but his relief turned to despair. His little friend was covered in ice and snow, and had turned blue with cold."

This book is a treasure found by my friend from Kinderbookswitheverything at a recent charity book sale. The copy she found was only $2 and even though this book was first published in 1994 this copy is in mint condition which means the publisher used good paper and the book has been stored carefully. This book is long out of print but I am happy that this copy will now go into a library where it can be borrowed and enjoyed by a whole new set of readers.  But I need to put on my detective hat. Who is Marc Craste and who are Murray Child and Company - the publisher from Collaroy? I had no idea a publisher had a business in Collaroy in the 1990s. This suburb is very near my home here in Sydney. This is especially odd because Marc Craste lives in the UK.

So now we need to complete the circle. Marc Craste illustrated Varmints which written by Helen Ward the illustrator I featured yesterday! Marc Craste works in the film industry as an animator. His movies include: Varmints, Jo Jo in the Stars, Stuck on a Sunday, Neighbors, Guinness and Seconds From Greatness. If you have time click the link for Varmints - it is an amazing short film reminiscent of The Lost Thing by Shaun Tan. Or you could watch the two minute trailer. Here are some details:

Adapted and directed by Marc Craste, Varmints is a 24-minute film based on the award-winning book of the same name by Helen Ward and illustrated by Craste, that tells the story of one small creature's struggle to preserve a world in danger of being lost forever through recklessness and indifference. A crew of 35 people worked in three countries over a two year period to make the film, and an original score by Icelandic composer Johann Johannsson and sound design by Adrian Rhodes complete the picture.

I had a copy of Varmints in my former library but I will confess I did not read it (you can't read every book). I now need to look for this. I can see this book would be perfect to pair with another Helen Ward book - The Tin Forest.

Aesop trickster tale The Fox and the Stork

Recently my friend the Teacher-Librarian from Kinderbookswitheverything gifted (loaned) an Aesop fable or a folktale to each teacher in her school. I always cheer when teachers ask to read Aesop's fables with their class. There are so many and they are such wonderful stories. I plan to borrow various Aesop stories and talk about them here over the coming months. They often contain the most scrumptious illustrations too.

The Fox and the Stork is a trickster tale. The Fox thinks he has tricked the hungry Stork when she cannot eat the soup he has prepared. Her long beak makes soup in a shallow dish an impossible meal. But later it is the Stork who tricks that silly Fox when she offers him a dinner in a narrow jar - perfect for her beak but impossible for the fox. 

Here are some editions of this story. I love the illustrations in the retelling by Karl Ruhmann illustrated by Alessandra Roberti (North South Books 2003). Of course you will also find this story included in most Aesop anthologies.

Karl Ruhmann is the author of another book I loved to read in my former library when we were exploring books about penguins - Filbert flies.

Henry and the Fox by Chris Wormell

"This is Henry, and Henry is a coward."

"Everyone thought poor Henry was hopeless. 

He only had one friend in the whole world: 

a bantam named Buffy."

Buffy is a such a good friend and she is a problem solver. She thinks of a clever way to fool the other hens and show Henry is brave. She takes some washing from the farm clothes line and uses it to make a fox. A sock filled with grass and leaves becomes a tail and a baggy red jumper, from a distance, looks just like the body of the fox hiding in the nettles. 

It is a brilliant plan except there is a problem. Rhoda overhears the pair of friends. She 'spills the beans' to all other hens. What none of them realise is the jumper has become a warm inviting bed in the summer sunshine. Someone has come along and curled up and fallen asleep on this inviting bed. Yes you are right the someone is a real fox. Henry leaps onto the jumper and without realising attacks the fox.

"Poor Henry got a terrible shock when the red woolly jumper turned in a real fox. He opened his beak to scream, only that's not what came out. What came out was a glorious "Cock-a-doodle-doo! right in the fox's face. The fox ran for his life."

Henry and the Fox was published in 2006 and so sadly it is out of print but you may find a copy in a library. The illustrations showing the rural setting, stone fence, old farm house and meadow are wonderful. They reminded me of John Joe and the Big Hen by Martin Waddell illustrated by Paul Howard. Here is the web site for Chris Wormell.  I would pair this book with these:

Albert and Lila

Banjo and Ruby Red

Charlie's Checklist by Rory S Lerman illustrated by Alison Bartlett

Tuesday Treasure

Charlie lives in the country but he is sure he should move to the city. 

"When he was old enough to use the phone and write with a black pen he sent an ad to a London Newspaper."

Wait a minute - who is Charlie? You need to see his ad:

SIX WEEK OLD PUPPY

Young, naive and irresistible looking for a suitably enthusiastic owner. 

Must be under twelve and wear glasses. Applicants please send photo and references.

The envelopes start to arrive - so many Charlie has to hire an assistant to help him. Luckily Chester lives nest door. Charlie has known Chester since the night he was born. Together they sort all the letters into piles of no and maybe. As Charlie reads each letter he adds to his checklist:

• Must have room for me
• Must be kind to animals
• Must provide me with a stable home

Finally the perfect letter arrives. Naomi lives in the penthouse on the fifteenth floor. She promises to take Charlie to museums and the theatre and share eggnog at Christmas. Chester offers to help Charlie pack but oddly Chester seems quite downcast so Charlie takes another look at his checklist. 

"Charlie knew why Chester was dragging his feet. His tail dropped between his legs and he felt very silly having overlooked his best friend of all."

The checklist needs changing: "Must wear red and white striped dungarees, must be four feet three inches tall, must like playing ball and must have five freckles on each cheek." Charlie has finally found the perfect friend and the perfect place to call home.

Charlie's Checklist is one of my Tuesday treasures. These are older books mostly out of print that I enjoyed sharing in my former library. Today I visited a charity book sale where I picked up heaps of terrific books for bargain prices. Charlie's Checklist (1997) only cost $1. Here is a video of the whole book. In the interests of full disclosure I should probably mention my childhood dog (and best friend) was also called Charlie.  I would pair Charlie's Checklist with Care of Henry which is another book which explores the idea of creating a checklist along with the love of a special dog:

Another companion read is this gem - Wanted: The perfect pet.

Here are a couple of other books illustrated by Alison Bartlett which you may find in a well stocked library.

Mouse and Mole by Joyce Dunbar illustrated by James Mayhew

Mouse and Mole are planning a picnic but there is the problem of the weather. It's a cold rainy day so the pair have to settle for a day inside. Mole is a grumbler. Mouse is an optimist. Mole is always hungry. Mouse likes to cook and share his hospitality. After their day indoors though, the next day the sun is shining. That's great but the house is a mess. Mole ate so much yesterday he decides it is time for exercise so helpful mouse begins to clean up. The pair of friends shift all the mess into the kitchen. It is exhausting so they decide to have a cup of tea before starting their exercises. Oh no - the kitchen is a mess. 

"So together they tidied up the kitchen. They scooped up all the bits and bobs. They gathered in all the odds and ends. Then they bundled them into the bedroom. It took them the rest of the day."

They enjoy their cup of tea with pancakes and treacle. Feeling exhausted they head off to the bedroom deciding to have an early night BUT ... 

Finally, Mouse tells Mole they need to clear away all their "stuff". 

"You can have stuff, or you can have space ... but you can't have both."  

The friends fill three sacks which they take to the rubbish dump BUT the dump is full of such interesting "stuff". 

Mouse and Mole are characters in several books and there are different editions of the stories by Joyce Dunbar so it has taken me a while to sort out this tangle. In my former library we had these books by Wong Herbert Lee which are not related to the books by Joyce Dunbar.

We also had this book by AH Benjamin illustrated by John Bendall-Brunello 

This post is about the Mouse and Mole books by Joyce Dunbar illustrated by James Mayhew but adding to my confusion the Joyce Dunbar books were also released as Corgi Pup titles with a different illustrator - Alison De Vere:

And finally here are the four books by Joyce Dunbar illustrated by James Mayhew.

I have been hunting for the James Mayhew Mouse and Mole books for many years. They are on my wish list but here in Australia the only editions I can find are hardcover and each title costs more than $30 which is way beyond my budget for a slim 27 page junior book so I actually squealed when I saw a paperback copy at a charity book sale last week and it only cost 50 cents! My copy was published in 1993 but it is in great condition.

A new Mouse and Mole book will be released in May, 2021.

Joyce Dunbar is the author of over 80 books and James Mayhew is probably most famous for his books about Katie who visits art galleries and Ella Bella the ballerina titles.

There are lots of stories which contain unlikely friends.  My colleague from Kinderbookswitheverything and I have been collecting them and you can see many in this Pinterest.

The Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt translated by Laura Watkinson

A young messenger. A secret mission. A kingdom in peril.

When Tiuri answers a desperate call for help, he finds himself on a perilous mission that could cost him his life. He must deliver a secret letter to the King who lives across the Great Mountains – a letter upon which the future of the entire realm depends. It means abandoning his home, breaking all the rules and leaving everything behind – even the knighthood he has dreamed of for so long.

The fate of a kingdom depends on just one person…

He must trust no one.

He must keep his true identity secret.

Above all, he must never reveal what is in the letter. Pushkin Press

Some years ago a friend gave me a book - The Secrets of the Wild Wood.  When I looked at it more closely I discovered it was the second book in a series so some time last year I bought book one - The Letter for the King.

I now discover a few things

• Tonke Dragt is the IBBY Netherlands 2022 Hans Christian Andersen nominee
• The Letter for the King is a translated book from Dutch - the original title is De brief voor de koning
• The Letter for the King was first published in 1962. 
• It is a very long book with 508 pages. The audio book is nearly 16 hours of listening.
• You can read the plot in great detail here along with a full character list
• The Letter for the King was translated in 2013 into English

This book is included in 1001 children's books you must read before you grow up. Here is a quote:

"The story is structured like an epic narrative and offers the readers a range of thrilling adventures that take place in the Middle Ages. Tonke Dragt has incorporated a large number of fairy-tale motifs into the story and borrowed elements from Arthurian legend. In 1963 this book was proclaimed the best children's book of the year in the Netherlands."

Reading The Letter for the King is a marathon. I spent many weeks in the company of Tiuri. This is a rewarding reading experience because Tiuri is a brave hero; he is a loyal friend; he overcomes enormous difficutlies; and (thank goodness) he does deliver the letter to the King - a happy ending. If your young (ages 10+) reading companion enjoys books filled with medieval knights, wild horse riding, the power struggle of good and evil, and splendid story book heroes then this book is well worth finding.

This book has been made into a Netflix series. Watching the trailer this series does look very different from the book. 

In 1996 Tonke Dragt wrote The Goldsmith and the Master Thief. This book is not related to this series but I wanted to share that the English translation of this will be available in May, 2021.

A Mystery in the Forest by Susanna Isern illustrated by Daniel Montero Galán translated by Jon Brokenbrow

Deer follows his daily routine. He crosses the river and goes to an isolated part of the forest to collect seasonal produce - oranges, pears and apples in Winter; strawberries, cherries and apricots in Spring; blueberries, raspberries, plums and figs in Summer; and grapes, chestnuts, walnuts and hazelnuts in Autumn. Deer loves to cook and his neighbours enjoy the delicious smells wafting from his kitchen. 

When his cooking is complete, Deer shares his treats at a huge outdoor table with all of his forest friends.

"They share a snack, laugh, and chat until the sun sets, and the first crickets begin to chirp."

At this point you could stop reading this story and ask the question what will happen now? How will Susanna Isern make her story interesting? Can you think of a complication?

Someone has been watching Deer. When he reaches the forest on an Autumn morning he finds a scene of destruction and back at home it is clear he has been robbed - his secret recipe book is missing. Who is the thief? Why has this happened? And most importantly how should or will Deer react when he finds the culprit?

This lovely book about forgiveness shows that friendship can form even in the most unlikely situations. Kirkus star review

Susanna Isern is a writer, psychologist and mother of three. She is the author of over 60 children's books, which are available all over the world and have been translated into over a dozen languages. Susanna lives in Santander, Spain. Susanna Isern is a psychologist BUT even though this book has a "message" or moral it is done with such a light touch there is no sense that she was writing with an agenda or that she wanted to teach her young readers "a lesson". Take a look at this post about another of Susanna's books - The big book of Superpowers. You can see art by Spanish illustrator Daniel Montero Galan here. 

I would use Shelter by Celine Claire illustrated by Qin Leng as a companion read with A Mystery in the Forest.

A Mystery in the Forest (Spanish title Un misterio en el bosque) is the second book by Susanna Isern and Daniel Montero Galán in the series Whispers in the Forest. I am very keen to read the first:

Here are some other books by Susanna which I have added to my own "to read" list: