The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson illustrated by Beth Krommes

Krommes’s breathtaking scratchboard illustrations, in black and white with accents of yellow and gold, embody and enhance the text’s message that light and dark, like comfort and mystery, are not mutually exclusive, but integral parts of each other. Kirkus Star review

Having talked about a couple of recent Caldecott winners I decided to hunt out some of the past winners and honour titles that I had not seen. One that caught my eye was The House in the Night - 2009 winner. I wonder why I didn't buy this for my previous school library - I love it and it would have most certainly been a book I would have put into the hands of our very skilled art teacher.

Here is the key to the house.

In the house burns a light.

In that light rests a bed.

On that bed waits a book.

In that book flies a bird.

In that bird breathes a song ...

all about the starry dark.

Through the dark glows the moon.

On the moon's face shines the sun.

Sun in the moon, moon in the dark,

dark in the song, song in the bird,

bird in the book, book on the bed,

bed in the light,

light in the house.

Here is the key to the house,

the house in the night,

a home full of light.

This is as close to perfect as a picture book can get. Text and woodcut illustrations combine to create a superb artwork. We see the enchanting power of four imaginations becoming one: the author, the illustrator, the child in the book who reads, and you, the reader. The child reading in bed is transported by the book and we join him/her on a journey. We feel the comforting, enveloping warmth of home, and freedom to fly to the sun and the moon. A book within a book, where it begins it also ends, and in-between there is a whole other, tantalising world. Readings Melbourne

In 2024 I penned a blog post - Meet the Illustrator Beth Krommes - I should have hunted out The House in the Night for that post.

As well as a regular format you can also buy this book as a board book and even though I have not seen it, I think this book could work quite well presented that way. Very sadly, you were probably expecting me to say this, here in Australia the hardcover version of this book will be way beyond any school library budget at over AUS$37.

Take a look at this blog post from Seven Impossible Things where Beth Krommes talks about her art techniques and you can also see an original storyboard for The House in the Night.

I once had the idea that my former school library could place a large mural on the first landing as you walk up the 20 stairs to the library. I even created a Pinterest with ideas. The page in this book "On that bed waits a book" would be SO perfect if you could get permission from Beth Krommes to recreate it for the wall.

If you are lucky enough to be working with trainee teachers or even people studying to be a Teacher-Librarian or tertiary students enrolled in a Children's Literature course this is a book you must include as an exemplar of page turns, art, text placement, cover design, and so much more. The title page alone is worthy of close inspection:

Companion book:

The Jolly Postman series by Allan Ahlberg

 

I felt moved to re-read my set of Jolly Postman books after hearing that Allan Ahlberg died on the 28th July - just last week. Imagine my surprise when I opened the original book - The Jolly Postman - only to discover it was signed by Allan himself!  I have absolutely no idea how or where this happened - but yay!

The Jolly Postman delivers letters and cards to the inhabitants of fairy land – and drinks a lot of cups of tea. The book includes six letters in envelopes to pull out and read and on every page are lots of little details to spot.

Allan had briefly worked as a postman but the idea for the book actually came from noticing how much his two-year-old daughter liked playing with the post. She loved to take letters out of envelopes and put them back in again. The Ahlbergs were determined that the envelopes and letters would be part of the book. We may take it for granted now that books can be interactive and playful but it took five years to make The Jolly Postman, partly because the Ahlbergs were insistent that all the details would work perfectly.

The Jolly Postman (1986)

"A Jolly Postman delivers letters to several famous fairy-tale characters such as the Big Bad Wolf, Cinderella, and the Three Bears. Twelve of the pages have been made into six envelopes and contain eight letters and cards. Each letter may be removed from its envelope page and read separately."

The Jolly Christmas Postman (1991)

"A Jolly Postman delivers Christmas cards to several famous fairy-tale characters such as the Big Bad Wolf, Cinderella, and the Three Bears. Each card may be removed from its envelope page and read separately. With 6 letters in pockets".

The Jolly Pocket Postman (1995)

"Join the jolly postman with his mailbag of delightful deliveries for Dorothy from Oz, Alice from Wonderland, and other favorite storybook characters."

These books are a perfect demonstration of the importance of familiarity with nursery rhymes and fairy tales and later classic stories like The Wizard of Oz.  I can see someone developing a thesis around all the myriad of references found in the text and in the tiny corners of the illustrations in each of these books. Look at this picture above - can you spy Rapunzel; Dick Wittington; Jack and the Beanstalk; the little crooked man; and others I cannot identify - can you?

On each page, there are different letters to read and each offers a fun insight into classic fairy tale characters. The letters also offer a chance of the reader to predict. “What will this letter to the Giant say? Who could it possibly be from?” This story is perfect for a bedtime or story-time reading with parent and child.  The story is a clever rhyming narrative of the Jolly Postman’s travels through fairytale land delivering letters to various fairytale creatures. ...  The letters are also written in a variety of styles: some are formal, such as the letter from the law office; others are informal, and misspelled, like the letter from Goldilocks. Each voice heard in the letters is distinct and unique.

One aspect of the three books that always fascinated and delighted me were the stamps and of course the creative addresses on each envelope.

Image adapted from Kathy apRoberts

Pick up your copies of the books and look for these stamps: Old King Cole; the Loch Ness Monster; Cinderella with her Prince and the glass coach; the Queen of Hearts; the Lion and the Unicorn; Georgie Porgie kissing the girl; the house in the tornado from the Wizard of Oz and even a postage paid stamp from "The Sunny side of the Street".

I also have some favourites among the inclusions inside the envelopes:

The Jolly Postman - Hobgoblin Supplies Ltd advertising page; the official publisher letter from Peter Piper Press and the mini book of Cinderella; and the formal legal letter to Mr Wolf from Meeny, Miny, Mo, & Co Attorneys at Law - here is an extract

"Please understand if this harassment does not cease, we will call in the Official Woodcutter, and - if necessary - all the King's horse and all the King's men."

The Jolly Christmas Postman - my favourite thing is the peep hole or concertina book in the final envelope. I mentioned this very recently. And of course the little jigsaw of Humpty Dumpty is such a terrific surprise.

From The Kids' Book Explorer

On a rainy day you could have hours of fun with these three books - reading all the inclusions and then playing all the games. You might also like to write some letters or postcards and actually post them - not just send an email - to a family member or friend. 

The Humpty Dumpty jigsaw puzzle, the Christmas card to Baby Bear from Goldilocks, 

the fold-out board game to Little Miss Riding Hood from a certain Mr Wolf, and

the Toytown Christmas Annual booklet

Now go back and look at other tiny details. For example look for the tiny old fashioned domestic items such as a vacuum cleaner; telephone; mantle clock; grandfather clock; a radio; the witch eating horrid jam; Cinderella has all her newly opened wedding presents beside her; and on the wall of the bedroom behind the wolf who is disguised as Grandma you will see a painting of Red Riding Hood herself. The postman reading his newspaper - Mirror Mirror; in hospital (in the Jolly Pocket Postman) a cat is visiting with a soccer ball and on the next page we see him scoring a goal - Allan Ahlberg loved soccer (football). Did you notice the Gingerbread Boy lives in a house made from a biscuit tin? There is a moving van called the 3 Little Pigs Ltd. There is just so much to discover and to TALK about in these glorious books. I do hope you can find all three to share with your child. 

Don't you love getting mail? Letters are so fun to open up and read, and here is this book, 

The Jolly Postman or Other People's Letters, full of letters to people like the Three Bears, and Goldilocks, and the Giant from Jack and the Beanstalk. Cool, huh? I wonder who is writing to them? What kind of letters to fairy tale characters get, anyway? Hmmm. The only way to find out is to ask your parents for a trip to the library or bookstore to find this book. Then find a squishy, comfy chair, and get reading (or, have someone read it to you). Bugs and Bunnies

Image Source The Postal Museum on Facebook

Image source: The Federation of Children's Book Groups Facebook post

One Little Duck by Katrina Germein illustrated by Danny Snell

"One little duck went out one day, over the hills and far away. Mother duck said ..."

Wait a minute mother duck said - moo moo moo - no no no - what is going on here? A cow now joins the group. 

"Two happy friends went out one day, under the fence and through the hay. Mother duck said ..."

Bow-wow wow-wow! and so a dog joins them along with a chicken, a lamb, a donkey and a pig - seven happy friends. But what about Mother Duck? She is still calling for her baby - but it is okay "Mum I'm back!"  This long parade of farm animals reminded me of Who sank the Boat?

One Little Duck has been shortlisted for our CBCA (Children's Book Council of Australia) Early Childhood Picture Book award. This category is for children aged 0-6 and One Little Duck is certainly a preschool book. It will fit in well with all the Nursery Rhymes I hope preschool educators share with their groups every day. With very young children you should also notice the animals in the scene near the end are reading a famous book - The Three Little Pigs. Also, all the way through the mother duck has been shopping and, in each scene, the hungry animals are holding out their bowls waiting for her delicious food. It might be fun to talk with your group and try to guess what she has been making. I love the way Danny Snell has added another story layer with his illustrations in this book. 

Each evening, as she tries to find her quack, the roll at the tea table grows in length and diversity but she remains unflappable, just getting out a bigger cooking pot and more dishes and cutlery each time.  Until one night… The Bottom Shelf

One more thing - did you spy a lighthouse in some of the illustrations?

Here are some teachers notes from the publisher. And some others are here. 

You can read the judges' critique: Children acquainted with the traditional rhyme, Five Little Ducks, will be delighted with this inventive and surprising picture book about a mother duck who has forgotten how to quack! The familiarity of a farmyard setting is used throughout and the amusing farm animals are the heroes of this story. Page design and an engaging illustration layout together with the endpapers subtly connecting to wallpaper inside the duck house, combine with the lively, humorous text to create a cohesive and enjoyable reading (or singing!) experience. Every element of this book has been carefully considered, from the narrative pace to the visual humour, providing countless opportunities to revisit and retell stories, and to discuss and explore concepts such as sequencing and counting.

The award-winning author and illustrators have done a remarkable job in reimagining one of our favourite nursery rhymes. This is a much-loved picture book, one which all families should add to their collection. Reading Time

Here is the original Nursery Rhyme:

Five little ducks went out one day

Over the hill and far away

Mama duck said quack, quack, quack, quack

But only four little ducks came back

Four little ducks went out one day

Over the hill and far away

Mama duck said quack, quack, quack, quack

But only three little ducks came back

Three little ducks went out one day

Over the hill and far away

Mama duck said quack, quack, quack, quack

But only two little ducks came back

Two little ducks went out one day

Over the hill and far away

Mama duck said quack, quack, quack, quack

But only one little duck came back

One little ducks went out one day

Over the hill and far away

Mama duck said quack, quack, quack, quack

But none of the five little ducks came back

Sad mother duck went out one day

Over the hill and far away

Sad mother duck said quack, quack, quack, quack

And all the five little ducks came back

Image source Itsy Bitsy Music

I have a very small Pinterest collection of Songs in Picture Books. I would also look for these books by Tony Wilson:

See more books illustrated by Danny Snell. Here are two other books by Katrina Germein I have previously talked about:

Before you were born

Bev and Kev

Nursery Rhymes

 

Sydney Morning Herald 14th January, 2023

Think about this image - do you immediately recognise the Nursery Rhyme?

There was an old woman who lived in a shoe.

She had so many children, she didn't know what to do.

She gave them some broth without any bread;

And whipped them all soundly and put them to bed.

Does this cartoon have more impact if you are familiar with the old woman in her shoe? 

Dr Robin Morrow and I recently prepared a short video for IBBY Australia members about Nursery Rhymes. 

A couple of things inspired me to suggest this topic for our IBBY Members. First of all Nursery Rhymes, which have survived for centuries, are now at risk of being lost in busy lives dominated by screen culture. Far too often I see parents on devices - ignoring their young children. I always gift a nursery rhyme book when a new baby arrives but I wonder - do the parents read any of the rhymes to their child? And what about the less well known rhymes - are they all now lost? 

I just discovered this new book which will be available in August - it is sure to contain lots of familiar and unfamiliar rhymes. Read more here. 

So I wanted to pose the question: What can we do to counteract the possible trend that children are not hearing Nursery Rhymes?

Secondly, I purchased a beautiful Nursery Rhyme collection illustrated by Jackie Morris but to my eye this is not a book for a young child - it is a book to share with an older child or one to enjoy on your own shelves so I went hunting for other Nursery Rhyme anthologies - many by very famous and special illustrators and many designed for very young children.

Our presentation had three purposes:

• To show why nursery rhymes are important for all ages
• To showcase exemplary anthologies of nursery rhymes by the best illustrators
• To share examples of references to nursery rhymes in contemporary culture

Nursery Rhymes:

• Introduce rich vocabulary
• Children hear the rhythm of English
• Include alliteration, onomatopoeia, rhyme and imagery
• Easy to learn and repeat
• Contain patterns
• Story structure of beginning, middle and end

Here are a few of the special books we shared.  I do hope some of these are either in your local or school library or even in print and available for you to gift to a young child or even better available for you to consider it as an addition to your school library.

Brian Wildsmith 1964

Tomie dePaola 1985

Raymond Briggs 1966

Rosemary Wells 1996

Mies van Hout 2014

Read more about this one here

We also discovered this amazing parody.

I will talk a little more about this book in the coming weeks.

I was interested to discover the CBCA selected a Nursery Rhyme book as a Notable title in about 2009.

Can you keep a secret?

Now think about books like The Jolly Postman by Allan Ahlberg and his other famous book Each Peach Pear Plum.  How much richer is the reading experience when a child recognises the Nursery Rhyme references in these texts.

Think about the opening lines: Each Peach Pear Plum I spy Tom Thumb. Tom Thumb in the cupboard I spy Mother Hubbard.

What about these?

Today I discovered there is a World Nursery Rhyme week - 13th to 17th November, 2023.

I hope I have inspired you to seek out nursery rhymes and to share them with the young and not so young readers in your life. 

Can you Keep a Secret? Timeless rhymes to share and treasure

My friend and I have plans for an IBBY presentation about Nursery Rhymes so I was delighted to find this Australian anthology at a recent charity book sale. Once again I have found an expensive book originally $33 for a very low price ($3) and once again the copy is in mint condition - it may never have even been opened. My copy is also a first edition.

Can you Keep was published in 2008. If you can find a copy this would be a splendid addition to a school, preschool or public library.

In this book Mark Cathew has collected Nursery Rhymes, Playtime Rhymes, Action Rhymes, Chanting Rhymes, Finger Plays and Lullabies.

"In this collection I have sought to rekindle favourites from the past and bring to light lesser known works. ... This collection represents to me the wondrous journey of childhood and the traditions of sharing our imaginations and the joy of verse."

Random House Australia put a lot of effort into the publication of this 185 page book. It has a ribbon book mark, cloth reinforced spine, thick paper and vibrant full colour illustrations. There is also a first line index and a list of sources for the rhymes. I have discovered a cover image online which I share above which shows this book was a CBCA notable. I can only guess that this would have been in 2009 and perhaps in the Eve Pownall category. Mark Carthew produced a CD version of this book and you can hear some tracks here. The delightful thing about this is hearing Australian voices. In 2020 a different publisher reissued Can you Keep a Secret in paperback. You can see inside the ebook version here. 

Here are a couple of rhymes which appealed to me:

Forty Years on an Iceberg

Forty years on an iceberg

Over the ocean wide

Nothing to wear but pyjamas,

Nothing to do but slide

The wind was cold and icy,

Jack Frost began to bite

I had to hug my polar bear

To keep me warm at night, night, night, night...

Wash the Dishes

Wash the dishes, 

wipe the dishes,

Ring the bell for tea;

Three good wishes, 

three good kisses,

I will give to thee.

The title of this book comes from a traditional Playtime Rhyme:

Can you keep a secret? I don't suppose you can. 

You mustn't laugh, you mustn't cry.

But do the best you can!

About the author: Mark Carthew is an award winning Australian children’s author, poet, musician and educator well known for his books and series celebrating music, movement, drama, humour and wordplay.  Mark’s recent picture books include Five Little Owls, The Moose is Loose! The Great Zoo Hullabaloo! and The Gobbling Tree, winner of Speech Pathology Australia’s Book of the Year. ... His 2020 releases included a special 10th Anniversary eBook & print edition of his CBCA Notable verse and song anthology Can You Keep a Secret? Timeless rhymes to share and treasure; and an exciting picture book featuring the unique and diverse animals of the Amazon rainforest - The Dingle Dangle Jungle, illustrated by Dave Atze (SA), published by Ford Street Publishing. The Dingle Dangle Jungle was shortlisted in the prestigious 2020 Educational Publishing Awards Australia.  Mark’s latest picture book (Released Feb 1, 2021) is The Thing That Goes Ping! illustrated by Shane McGowan (Shane McG), published by Ford Street Publishing.  Mark is a May Gibbs Children’s Literature Trust Fellow (Brisbane, 2013) and more recently (Adelaide, 2020 / 2021). His achievements in writing have also been acknowledged via a Distinguished PhD Award from Swinburne University of Technology. 

I do like the illustrations in this book by Jobi Murphy. 

Little Bo Peep's Library book by Cressida Cowell

 

This afternoon I was browsing through the catalogue of the wonderful book shop from South Australia called Pegi Williams and I made a wonderful discovery - Little Bo Peep's Library book has been republished. The original came out in 1998 and the new edition will be available in November. I have put the new and old covers above. This is a book I have often shared in my school library. If you know someone who is a Teacher-Librarian this book would be a perfect gift and if you have a young friend or relative who has joined their local library I suggest you pop this book into their Christmas stocking. 

Most Australian Primary school libraries use the Dewey Decimal system as a way to organise their non fiction collection. There are arguments from time to time as to whether this is the best system. Some people use genre labels and others group subjects but for me this system does work. There are times, however, when it can be a little complex for students. Take a look at these examples

Horses 599.7   Horses on farms 636.1   Horse riding 798

Fish 597   Fish as pets 639.37   Fishing 799

You can see from this that when a young library user asks for a book about horses or fish it is important to ask more questions. 

In Little Bo Peep's Library Book this idea is used to full effect. 

Little Bo Peep asks the question - Where will she find the sheep?  

Little Boy Blue sends her to the library and Mother Goose, the helpful librarian, sends her to Lamb (in the cooking section). Near those shelves she finds the Big Bad Wolf. She asks him if he knows how she might find a book about 'how to find sheep'. The Big Bad Wolf directs her to the crime section. Sitting in the crime section Little Bo Peep meets the Queen of Hearts and the queen tells Bo to go the natural history section. Luckily that is where she finds the perfect book with the title "How to find sheep" by A.Shepherd. 

"So Little Bo Peep took that book to the librarian's desk ... and the librarian stamped it with her stamping thing."

And yes Bo Peep does find her sheep but your young reading companion might just spot them a little earlier than our tiny story hero. The magical thing about this book is that it contains pull out books. I do hope the new edition includes these too.

The book opens with this cute date due slip which you can lift up!

Here is Mother Goose - the librarian.

One of the little books you can pull off the library shelves and YES they are 'real' books. I have always love the idea of a book inside a book etc.

Here is a page from the cookery book:

This shows you one of the book shelves:

This is the second time Little Bo Peep's library book has been republished.  My friend from Kinderbookswitheverything alerted me to the 2009 edition which has a slightly different title.