Book Report Day

I think I'll start a new category: "Book Report Day."  I put no actual day of the week because there's no guarantee I will be able to stick to a day, and it will quickly become "Book Report Some Other Day When I Get to It." But I'll start with it now since the Muse is not completely lazy at the moment.

Each week we go to the library for story time for my son and for checking out new books for the three out of four people in our household who are voracious readers.  We check out children's picture books for all of us to read and chapter books (which usually means American Girl books) for my daughter to read.  We also check out books for me to read.  Yes, I do take time to read.  I would be lost without it.  And I don't know if I could actually go to sleep properly if I didn't have reading time before bed.

I've been reading The Martha Years and The Charlotte Years by Melissa Wiley (though I haven't been able to read the last of The Charlotte Years because the library doesn't have it and I can't find it for less than about $30-used-on Amazon).  Not only are the books enjoyable to read, Ms. Wiley seems to be an amazing woman.  She writes children's books, blogs, has a recommended book list, does appearances, and homeschools her six children. Ah, well.  We can't all, and some of us don't, as Eeyore said.  Anyway, the books, which are about Laura Ingalls Wilder's grandmother and great-grandmother, are excellent.

Two children's books stand out recently.  What to Do if an Elephant Steps on Your Foot by Michelle Robinson, illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds.  This is a concise and humorous instructional book on what to do and what not to do if, indeed, and elephant steps on your foot. The Narrator, possessed of much patience and compassion, helps you learn these lessons.  The second book is  Thomas's Snowsuit by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Michael Martchenko.   So as not to have to include a spoiler alert, I will say simply this: Thomas does not want to put on his snowsuit, as his mother, his teacher, and the principal all learn to their exhaustion and the reduction of their sanity reserves.  Both of these have become favorites of ours because of the vast amounts of humor in both very short books; the humor includes the illustrations, without which the books aren't quite as funny, although nearly so.

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