Soviet comic book. Nu Pogodi (Just You Wait), 1988

Hans Andersen’s Fairy Tales

translated by Valdemar Paulsen

Rand McNally & Company

Chicago New-York

1928

Artist : Milo Winter

Sometimes classics can be improved upon.

The Tree Who Set Healthy Boundaries : an alternate ending for Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree by Topher Payne 💯🌳❤️

https://www.topherpayne.com/giving-tree?

Children's books: an alignment chart

One hundred and twenty nine years ago, the world was welcoming one of the greatest storytellers ever.

Ok, I’m one day late and I really wish I could have created something new for the birthday of our dear old friend, but in any case, it’s always good to celebrate the fantastic works of the one and only, J.R.R. Tolkien.

Hope you are surrounded by all that’s green and good, dear sir. Thank you for the world you brought to life!

And a happy week ahead everyone! 🍃⚔️📖

Chag Sameach! Happy first day of Hanukah.

The Shortest Day. Words by Susan Cooper, illustrations by Carson Ellis.

AWWW MAN. I hate this so much. Eric Carle -- the beloved creator of that famously hungry caterpillar -- has died at the age of 91, according to his family. They released a statement saying he "passed away peacefully and surrounded by family members on May 23, 2021 at his summer studio in Northampton, Massachusetts."

Neda Ulaby's lovely obit is here, with links to interviews that Carle did with NPR over the past few years (check out Debbie Elliott's 2007 visit to his studio; it's delightful).

Now, if you'll pardon me, I'm going to drown my sorrows in one piece of chocolate cake, one ice-cream cone, one pickle, one slice of Swiss cheese, one slice of salami, one lollipop, one piece of cherry pie, one sausage, one cupcake, and one slice of watermelon.

-- Petra

Illustration for HEDGEHOG’S HOME (1949) by Vilko Gliha Selan.

(╯︵╰,)

The Silver Hoof by Pavel Bazhov, artist E. Popkova (1985)

Somehow I never imagined she would grow up. This is strangely moving.

When we posted the alternate ending for The Giving Tree a couple of weeks ago, it roused a lot of strong opinions for or against the rewrite. People either LOVED it or HATED it.

So... here’s another alternate ending (also by Topher Payne) to a much-debated children’s book, The Rainbow Fish.

What do we think of this one?

...

Just read The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister as usual, right up to the visit to the octopus. Then, make the switch and read this as an alternative to everything that follows.

Dinosaurs - art by William de J. Rutherfoord (1959)

Cvijeta Job (1924-2013), ''Potjeh'' by Ivana Brlic-Mazuranic, 1975 ”The story is about a grandfather and his three grandchildren. They have to choose between good and evil where good represents the god Svarozic who is the son of the god Svarog. The evil represents the master of anger. His name was Bjesomar.  The purpose of these stories is to find the meaning of what one's heart desires.” Source

Can't wait to watch this documentary about Dolly Parton's literacy project, the Imagination Library. Since she began the book-gifting project in 1995, Parton and local community partners have donated over 160 million books to almost two million children (from birth to age five) in the United States, Canada Britain, Ireland, and Australia. It's streaming July 9 on Apple TV, Amazon Prime, and Google Play.

If people out there would stop making memes about my life, that would be great.

The Flying Islands of the Night by James Whitcomb Riley

1913

Artist : Franklin Booth

Langston Hughes Birthday Anniversary

Celebrating Black History Month is an opportunity to discuss Black artists and activists, so every Monday in February we will highlight significant works and events from Black America, starting with honoring the birthday of a legend.

Langston Hughes, born on this day, February 1 in 1902 (or, as was recently discovered, possibly 1901), was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Missouri best known as one of the leaders of the Harlem Renaissance. To celebrate, we present the 1952 children’s book The First Book of Negroes, which we think pairs well with the 2021 theme of Black History Month: “Black Family: Representation, Identity and Diversity.” Written by Hughes, illustrated by Ursula Koering, and published in New York by Franklin Watts, the book speaks to African American experience through the eyes of a little boy from New York named Terry.

Hughes’s contributions to the equality movement were prolific and driven by a need to depict the real lives of Black people rather than the overused and outlandish stereotypes that plagued pre-integration America. In discussing his purpose in creating poetry and plays surrounding the African American experience, Hughes noted, “My seeking has been to explain and illuminate the Negro condition in America and obliquely that of all human kind.” His work sought to eradicate cultural self-hate, often including criticism and discussion surrounding relations within Black communities rather than commentary about relations between Black and white communities. While his work spans several genres, they are all connected to championing the lived Black experience.

View another post featuring Langston Hughes. 

View more Black History Month posts. 

-Emily, Special Collections Writing Intern

Folk tales of the North. Book illustrated by Kirill Ovchinnikov (USSR, 1968).